Liar Game
by Minute-Maid511
Summary: Li is a thief and a felon on the run and ends up bumping into the sweet, innocent kingpin of the world’s largest crime circle. Can he con his way out of this one and lie to avoid both the authorities and opposite end of the law?
1. Ubiquitous

"Cardcaptor Sakura"

_Liar Game_

Synopsis:

Tokyo: the technological capital of the world; the only city living in its own 31st century, mechanically-regulated bubble, and the home of the world's nastiest criminals. Li is a thief and a felon on the run and ends up bumping into the sweet, innocent kingpin of the world's largest crime circle. Can he con his way out of this one and lie to avoid both the authorities and opposite end of the law? Or will he get caught and hanged in a game of ultimate stakes?

***

Chapter One: Ubiquitous

"_Would that my lies become your belief,_

_To deceive thy eyes and blind my foes,_

_For even Socrates to agree at my behest,_

_I would make false your reality unto mine,_

_And give to thee a Faustian bargain;_

_So that the Devil may accord this pact,_

_That I might save my soul and sin once more,_

_All for the Silver of the King."_

_Translated from the German play, "Der Silberne König"_

_Act I, Scene II, Lines 258-265._

_Kingston, April 1, 2562_

_***  
_

It was cold tonight. Lieutenant Petrov Ailimetry hated the cold. Nine different permanent stationing moves and six of the nine had been in the cold. Either his superiors disliked him, or karma had a cruel sense of humour since participating in the Fire Wars of 3021at the illegal age of twenty. Twenty years later, a promotion and nine station changes, here his butt was in Boz—the coldest, most desolate and _deserted_ city Russia had to offer. Despite being a lieutenant, it meant nothing to his superior here in Boz who was enjoying the warmth of a fireplace at HQ. Petrov couldn't have hated the man more if he tried.

Stopping his circuit of the grounds, Petrov huffed a puff of white smoke in irritation and rubbed cold warmth into his stiff arms and shoulders. Cursing profusely he sneezed twice and wheezed an aching breath, as if his hatred of the weather would warm him, Petrov grumbled. What a federal facility was doing here in the middle of nowhere, and why it needed routine guarding wasn't his concern. The government didn't pay him to gripe complaints to the cold; no matter how many he had to give.

There was a sneeze of sound and Petrov whirled around; hand on his gun. Glaring into the blowing snow and wind, he cursed again and turned back to finish his damned circuit of the compound so he could go home and get drunk off heat and equal amounts of booze. The blistering cold weather was finally getting to his brain because he must be hearing things.

On a rooftop, directly behind Lieutenant Petrov, Li crouched against the windowsill of the second-story building, face buried in his glove. It had taken him exactly an hour and fifteen minutes to infiltrate the base without much hassle. The guards of the Federation were all lazy, arrogant and the ones he encountered were too cold to notice or care about an intruder in the dead of night. Boz had seen much more exciting days when the weather was fairer and the permafrost seemed permanently gone.

Turning around once the guard had disappeared, Li inspected the window. Enforced pyruveum. Pricey. It only reinforced the tip that had plunged him into this heat-forsaken wasteland in the first place. Unlatching the cyrex-plated diamond cutters from his belt, Li traced a small hole at the top of the glass. Hundreds of years of technological advances and space age later diamonds were still a girl and thief's best friend. Wedging a small round ball into the opening, he tapped the glass once, twice and stepped away, pressing his back against the wall, hearing the telltale hiss of melted pyruveum and steam.

Glancing inside the molten hole, Li saw the heat sensor right away, alerted to yellow, and threw an object the size of a marble at it, letting it latch onto it. Sparking a few times, the yellow light had once again turned green. All clear. This really was the weakest part of the facility—a functional heat sensor would've turned red right away to even the slightest change of heat in the atmosphere and alerted his presence to the entire building. Boz really had seen better days and security before its ice age when weather was warmer.

Stepping inside carefully to avoid the molten liquid metal, Li turned to his immediate left and saw, as expected, the executive suite that had the only elevator that would reach the floor above it. Kneeling down beside the door, he inspected it. Well damn. It was a downright archaic lock and key mechanism right in the doorknob. He owed Kero a hundred Clicks. It was time to stop betting on the validity of his information. As expected, the pyruveum didn't stay in its cool jelly state for long and reformed back in a snap—pristine. His only exit now was out the door and onto the balcony of the floor above the suite.

Slipping a wire inside, he stuck his diamond pick in and jiggled it a bit. Honestly, as old as it was, it was probably the best security because, by the 31st century, every thief worth their salt could empty the contents of Knox and still be confounded by the simplest of locks. Nobody used locks anymore, honestly.

The echo of footsteps reached his ears and Li paused for only a second, feeling the electrical charge run down his spine, telling him to hurry. Jiggling the wire with more fervour to get it done Li kept ducking his head over his shoulder for the sentry. Eyes widening at the glow of the flashlight, Li turned back to the lock and jiggled it a bit more. When the lock came with a click, he ducked inside as quickly as possible, feeling his heart pound in his chest and in his head.

Silence surrounded him, thick and heavy. Only moments later it was broken by the doorknob being turned furtively. Alarm bells turned red in Li's mind and he swiftly turned the lock in the doorknob. It was jiggled a few more times before being left alone. Indefinitely, it seemed. Li let out a sigh of relief and allowed himself a moment to relax to calm his nerves.

Turning on the light on his headband, he looked around the office. It was old and had actual books on the bookshelves. Taking the liberty to glance at a few of the titles, he raised an eyebrow at them. _The Damnation of Faust_, by Hector Berlioz; _Le Comte de Monte-Cristo_, by Alexandre Dumas; _Lysistrata by Aristophanes: An Adapted Version_, by Jacqueline Rose, and many more similar ancient books by authors that were long-since dead he'd never heard of decorated the walls in pristine, mint condition.

Li whistled. Nobody read actual books anymore let alone owned one. A real one cost upwards of five-hundred Clicks.

Turning away from the bookshelf, Li ignored everything else in the room—no matter how much he wanted to look at everything else in the museum of an office. He had a job to do. Heading straight for the wooden desk, he opened the top drawer and took the silver key embedded in white out of its secure padding. Removing a large painting that looked like a copy of the _Mona Lisa_—the real one had finally been stolen only thirty years ago during the _Fire Wars_, by Reed, his associate, no less—Li set it down carefully and revealed the hidden elevator. This elevator was the one and only way to enter the deathtrap that was the top floor—for it had only one window and had heavy security.

Remembering Kero's words as to what he should do once his job was successful, Li had to just wish for the best and hope that the cold wouldn't kill him on his way out. He could feel a cold coming on already. Turning the key in the lock, he pushed open the iron gate and returned the key to the desk, closing the drawer quietly. Stepping past the gate, he shut it and the door to the elevator closed promptly afterwards, immediately going up—as a response to the weight. Damn. He owed Kero another hundred Clicks. Apparently he was, with all his gear on, the same weight as Commander Trachtavin Regifeuld.

When the elevator door finally opened, Li continued walking, hearing the lasers activate behind him almost as soon as he left the elevator. It was programmed to vaporize anything that didn't leave the elevator within the next three seconds of the doors opening fully. Striding right up to the box containing one of the Federation's deadliest secrets known to man, Li placed his decoder on the solid steel box. Red numbers spun at lightning speeds, attempting to crack the ten digit number that was randomly generated every two minutes.

It was this moment that Li had practiced for the past three months for. As good a decoder it was, opening the box without the real authenticator took a minute and fifty-four seconds exactly. This gave him a short window to read the numbers and input them into the panel on the box that would open it without alarm before the number reset and was useless. Li had only one shot, because it would take the guards far less time to come and gun him down than he could try a second time and escape with increased security.

As the ninth spinning number stopped, revealing a four, Li thought in the back of his mind of bad luck. Despite all the nonsense it was, he would still avoid the number four and the colour white—he wasn't keen on having his luck run out on him at the worst possible moment. When the final number rolled another four, Li's itching hands got to work on the dial-pad. He had practiced this down to non-thought. When the box opened with an electrical hiss and revealed a red velvet ring box, Li took it and replaced it with the replica quickly. Mission successful.

Walking around the pedestal, as it hissed closed quietly without alarm, towards the grate-covered window he would escape through, Li walked around the wall obscuring it from view. Feeling his nose itch, he sneezed…

…right into the face of the guard posted there. They both froze for a few precious seconds. Unfortunately, it was the guard who was first to react.

"Freeze!" he yelled, fumbling for his gun.

Li took the split-second delay and kneed him in his gut, elbowing him between his shoulder blades, and finally kicking him, sending him flying towards a wall, slumped over. It was too late, however, as the guard had slapped the com link on his vest and it sparked to life.

"Intruder on the top floor! Requesting—urgh," the guard groaned as a kick was sent into the side of his head. It wasn't enough to kill, but would be the blame of a terrible headache the next day.

Frowning, Li cursed slightly. So this was what Kero meant by being on his own after job success. Cutting another hole in the blue-tinted window made of pyuveum, he quickly stuffed another jelly marble into it and stood back. The pyruveum hissed and steamed into the cold and the sudden flush of heat left a chill with Li. The grate still remained untouched, hot, liquid pyruveum pooling around the ground as the alarm went off and he saw lights like angry bees converging on his location from below.

Kicking at the grate as hard as he could a few times, he managed to break it apart at a few places due to the quick heating of the steam and cooling of the cold once it had all settled. Jumping through just as the liquid substance was reforming, Li glanced left and right, wincing when a light was flashed on him. Cover blown. It was time to bust his way out with his prize.

Lieutenant Petrov had heard the siren and frowned. Despite his frustrations with command, he was still a Lieutenant of the Federation and could get the axe pretty quickly if he wasn't doing his best. Holding his gun out in front of him, shivering, he pointed upwards when the spotlight came upon the thief—just a kid—dressed like a ninja in black having escaped from the building. There was a black mask over his face and Petrov couldn't help but wonder where he had seen those petrifying amber eyes before.

Raising a hand, blue smoke erupted in a quickly-formed cloud dispersing widely, obscuring the thief from sight. Aiming his gun into the smoke, Petrov started to fire like so many of his other colleagues had started doing. Mere moments later something like an arrow shot out of that cloud and Petrov caught it, whipping his head around to catch sight of the thief for the last time.

***

"Boys, gentlemen, place your bets!"

Grumbles and other curses were expelled towards the raven-haired woman with the sharp violet eyes grinning round the room. Eight of Japan's worst criminals were currently playing a twisted version of strip poker. All eight were attempting to walk away with some form of profit at the expense of others. All eight had slighted the one person in the world they shouldn't have and were playing a game to gain the chance to repent their action. Four would die tonight and four would make a huge profit and a chance to make amends to the party insulted before mysteriously disappearing after four weeks if amends were not made.

Coins and various bills were allotted in the centre after the hands were assembled and would remain so until the round winner took the pot. Only live players could hold money. Money did no good wherever these felons were going after the game was over.

"Tomoyo—"

"_Maitress_ Daidouji, to you Treius. Now what is it?"

The one called Treius grumbled something under his breath but stopped upon seeing her rather cheerful smile darken as her violet eyes flashed. "_Maitress_ Daidouji, I believe the number we all were informed of was the usual three—not two. This is… not fair."

The cocky smile returned to her face once more. Right now, Tomoyo was the very right hand of God herself. Anything she said would either get done or The Boss would be informed and that number would be drastically reduced. Nobody really knew how Tomoyo had gotten such a trusted and, rather vied, position beside The Boss, but they didn't dare question her rule. Tomoyo Daidouji was probably just as bad as The Boss.

Despite looking sweet and innocent, everyone sitting at that table knew Tomoyo had a short patience and you either humoured her or you didn't last long in this game. One of those humours, every so often, was to call her _Maitress_ Daidouji, rather than her typical address of Tomoyo. Hushed voices of nearby observers could be heard whispering _Devil Daidouji_ every now and then—but her attention was not to be stolen by trivialities. Tonight she was _Maitress_ Daidouji and they would all fear her every move. Letting out a cheerful laugh, covering her mouth with the back of her hand, Tomoyo wiped away an imaginary tear. Treius witnessed five of eight of Japan's worst criminals cower in fear to the wicked laugh of a twenty something year old slip of a girl. Slamming her hand on the table, she tilted her head, smirking at him.

"Princess, what say you?" she called out loudly, grinning wide—addressing The Boss directly—without taking her eyes off Treius.

"Shoot," came the curt, rather bored, response.

Whipping out a pistol in a flash of blue-black lightning as Tomoyo's unbound hair went flying, a click was heard in the room. In the span of no time at all, the barrel end of a silver magnum was ghosting the spot between Treius' eyes. Tomoyo earned her nickname well. She was the quickest draw and the most accurate shooter you had ever met. Tomoyo could shoot anything in a hundred yard range with that magnum of hers and be able to boast where she shot it to be true.

"You heard it here first. Last words, Treius?" she asked, winking at him.

A gurgled response came from the man and the fear and rage was evident in his face. Being able to boast a pretty mean shot of his own, he had attempted to do so once more after the judgement of his fate had come down. The fear came from the fact of his imminent death. The anger stemmed from being ousted by the girl that was the right hand of the devil.

"Maitress Daidouji, I beg that you please reconsider."

The crooked smile returned to her face and all the other seven were careful to avoid any chance of gaining eye-contact with her. Most were holding their cards stiffly before, but now they were shaking. Tomoyo held these games as The Boss' embodiment for reasons.

"Your last words are pitiful," she said condescendingly before a loud bang was heard and the smell of gunpowder filled the room. It was a sickly sweet, ancient smell that reminded everyone of the days where it was used. With a thud, Treius' body fell on the ground, his body pooling in his own blood. Spinning the silver gun once before pocketing it again, Tomoyo gave the remaining seven a good look. "Any other complaints?"

Heads were quickly shaken. No. No one was willing to test the temperamental disposition of The Boss—who had oddly attended this game rather than shut herself up in her room again. If it weren't for the fact that Tomoyo was such a loyal pet to The Boss, everyone would've assumed long ago that Tomoyo Daidouji was pulling the strings.

There was a shuffle and all eyes shifted towards the sound. Even Tomoyo had taken her eyes off the table to look up. Walking over quickly a hand reached out towards her, flailing slightly, before Tomoyo caught it, pulling The Boss to their feet. Tomoyo's other arm was wrapped around the other's waist, supporting her while the other held her hand, steadying her. Everyone watched as Tomoyo leaned close and whispered a few words. Everyone watched, some amazed—for this would be their first and last time seeing The Boss. 'The Boss' was nothing more than a girl that looked like she could be snapped in half by a strong wind. Eyelids lifted revealing glassy green eyes framed by long golden-brown hair. The room was silent and all eyes were on the pair by the couch in front of the fireplace in the darkened room.

After a few more moments, The Boss nodded to the whispers of Tomoyo and eventually stood on her own, threading a hand through her hair to the tips that hung loose around her waist like an unholy shroud. Tomoyo politely let go once the girl was steady and bowed slightly to her as she headed out the door, leaning on it slightly after stumbling.

"Russia," she called out in the same curt, bored response as earlier before stepping outside the door.

Tomoyo's eyes glanced over at one of the girls by the door and gave the faintest nod before she slipped out to follow their leader.

Eyes were wide. Thoughts were scattered. The feared 'Boss' was nothing more than a girl that didn't look any older than Tomoyo—possibly younger even. The one whose orders were responsible for a couple hundred deaths of Federation officials, guards and three of its presidents was probably around twenty years old. Seeing that that almost sickly-looking girl held the ominous title that others could only refer to her by as 'The Boss' was a little humiliating. For a long time, there were theories on her identity and who she could be. None even came close.

It was now that Tomoyo turned her attention back to the table—good instinct being around criminals for so long. Far more likely to get a bullet in the back of your head if you didn't. A wide smile was once again applied to her face as she stalked back over to her usual spot. With a quick glance at each of the men at the table, she took out her magnum once more. The calm that spread unconsciously at seeing the much-feared Boss, who didn't seem so scary after all, instantly disappeared. Even if that girl was not scary, Tomoyo certainly was.

"Any further questions or complaints? Good," she smiled. "Well now, the name of the game is strip poker. You each have two lifelines. Bottom two are reaper's seats. Yes, Vance?" she asked, seeing the grim question in his eyes.

"I shouldn't be here. I didn't even do anything to her."

A grin. "Too bad. Boys, gentlemen, let the betting be—"

"I SHOULDN'T BE HERE!" came the strangled cry from Vance, tears running down his face now, lunging on the table bawling by now, revealing his hand to be a pair of threes—being the lowest hand of them all. Even so, he had one lifeline left.

"Rankings will be recorded after discipline." Tomoyo only smiled crookedly. "Ruby, prepare the roulette."

***

Li groaned as he landed on the ground, slamming against the wall. Not even being given time to nurse his bruising sides, his collar was pulled viciously up, whipping his head back. Angry golden eyes stared back at him.

"They saw your damn face! You're all over the freaking news! What the hell is wrong with you getting your picture taken, Li?" Kero yelled an inch away from his face.

Upon managing a pathetic attempt to glare back through his one good eye Li blew air into Kero's face. Kero wasn't amused. "Well hell, Kero, if you had told me about that damn Fed blocking my only exit, maybe, just _maybe_ I _wouldn't_ be Russia's man most wanted dead!"

With an aggravated growl, Kero let go of Li's collar and swung around, stuffing hands in his pockets, pulling his scarf around him tighter. Despite being dressed all in black, his signature flaming golden hair was a dead giveaway in any condition. Even so, Kero had the superior ability to make himself scarce when he needed to be. Pacing around the room in frustration, Kero vented. Eventually kicking a hole in the wall he growled louder, taking his hands out of his pockets and scratching his head in frustration before kicking the wall again.

The first thing that Li was greeted with was a punch to the face upon seeing Kero. After that he had been dragged back to their hideout and beaten within an inch of his life. Underneath all the black clothing, only the black eye Li sported indicated any bodily harm was done.

Wiping a hand over his face, Kero turned back to Li. "You gotta lay low for a while," he said, shaking his head. It was the only option. "You _and_ me."

Li pushed against the wall, managing to stand to his feet; hoping the seeping cold would numb some pain. Hunching over, Li ran a black gloved hand through his hair. Looking up at Kero somewhat blearily, he gave a tired look. It was no use to ever argue with Kero. It never was.

"Where to? I don't even know if I can get out of the country the way it is. The Feds in North America and China still remember how I stole goods and blamed it on the gov to start that damn war three years back."

Kero shook his head. "No, no, not there. Shot on sight, buddy. I'm thinking Japan."

"Bubble capital?" Li returned incredulously.

With a nod of his head, Kero sat down on the battered green couch behind him. It had definitely seen better days. "Yeah. As long as you stay away from The Boss you should be fine for a month or two until this all blows over. While you're in hiding, I'll see about selling your hard work."

Li raised an eyebrow. "_The Boss?_" he questioned.

Pursing his lips, Kero cupped a hand over his mouth bracingly. "You don't want to know. This guy's got a lot of blood on his hands. No heart, man. One word from him and you're lucky to be alive in the next five minutes. Eyes friggin' everywhere. Remember Qi'shu way back?"

"Damn hell I do. Almost had my throat gutted by one of them. Biggest friggin' gang in China at the time. Glad they're gone."

"Yeah, that was _his_ doing. Q insulted him _big time_ and the next thing anyone knew his sorry carcass was found run up the Chinese flag pole in front of the Fed building a week later. Perps weren't even caught. Cleanest job I ever seen."

Eyebrows shot up and Li gave him an incredulous look. The Qi'shu had employed the meanest, roughest criminals this side of the planet. From the corrupt government to the smuggling ring in China, the Qi'shu were the ones pulling the strings. In about a span of a week, they had all been found dead—every single one of them right up to the man known only as Q. Word quickly spread and the only explanation given was 'The Boss.'

Sighing, Li shut his eyes. "Great, if I run into the Feds I'm dead. If I run into this guy, I'm worse than dead. Seriously though, Japan? It's like the Fed capital of the world! _And_ I have to stay outta this lunatic's way? Are you trying to kill me, Kero?"

Kero shook his head, sighing. "Australia is on a tight lockdown right now or I'd send you there instead. Look, it's only gonna be for couple months. Just lay low, change your name—or rather, _use_ your name, _Syaoran_—"

"_Xiaolang_, thank you, very much."

"Whatever. Keep your nose clean. Get a job. A real one. I already nabbed you a fake passport with a clean record—don't ruin it until I say so. You've already destroyed five already and Rita's throwing fits," he said, tossing the red little book at Li. The phoenix emblem that China had adopted was printed in gold on the front. "Flight's in three. Get your sorry butt on that plane and outta this damn cold country, or I'm not bailing you out of prison this time."

Pushing off the wall, Li walked across the room, slinging his black backpack over one arm. When something buzzed in his pocket, he reached inside and pulled out his phone. Scowling at it, he moved to put it back in his pocket.

"Whoa, whoa—who is it?" Kero asked, nodding at his phone.

"Feimei, as usual. Probably to whine about how I'm on the news again—in a different country. That or to drag me back home so my mother can kill me."

"Pass it," Kero said, as Li handed him his phone. Flipping the device open, a holographic image of Li's sister came into view. The phone hovered in the air as her image was projected like a screen. Her eyes were narrowed into a scowl and it looked like she was ready to kill someone. "Yo, chicka! What's shakin'?"

_"Kero you bastard. Hand it to my brother. Where is Xiao?"_ she demanded, tapping her finger impatiently, eyes skimming over probably to a nearby clock.

Feimei worked for Federation as the head of the Chinese Immigrations Department and was fluent in twenty different languages including two not in use. Feimei was the oldest out of them all and had chosen the studious life to pursue a career with Federation in liaison with the Chinese government. It was more than likely that she had broken some laws and used her authority to cover for Li's sake.

Grinning, Kero looked up at Li—who had his back turned to him. "Sorry, babe, he's not in right now. What can I do fer ya?"

Brute anger swept her features and she slammed both hands down on her desk. Kero winced. _"You damn—! Where the hell is my little brother? I want to talk to him right now you crook!"_

Kero's eyes shifted up to Li once more. A finger was placed at his lips and he jabbed his thumb at the doorway, indicating that he was leaving in the next five seconds. Sitting back against the couch, Kero tilted his head at her.

"I love you too, Feimei. Your baby brother is busy right now. Go harass someone else related to you," Kero said bluntly, winking at her. "Bye," he deadpanned leaning forward to the floating phone.

_"Wait! No! Kero, you—!"_

With a blip, the image disappeared and Kero snatched the device out of the air, tossing it over to Li. "You need to change your number, buddy. Your sister's hot, but she's _damn_ annoying."

Li frowned in frustration. "I do. All the time. She's engaged to the head of the International Information Bureau. His network is larger than yours."

Kero smirked, clasping his hands together. "I can guarantee it's not. Now move it. Don't keep Maz waiting or she'll have my head. A special flight is arranged for you. I'll see you in Japan in three months."

Li walked out the door. He didn't need to ask how Kero was getting out of the country; he didn't need to. Kero was like a ghost with literally no name on file—a person who didn't exist on paper. One day Kero would show up in front of him and they would continue doing what they were doing. Pulling the collar of his black trench coat a bit higher, Li put on goggles and a black hat before disappearing into the blizzard of white.

***

Tokyo.

It was dirty, it was corrupt and it was the only city to live in its own protective bubble. You could look up into the sky and see a blue sky that once was real—a couple hundred years ago. Now it was all simulated with artificial colouring and light. Those born in this city, unless they left Tokyo, never saw the real sky even once. If you looked up at the sky at the right time when the false sun was high you could see the sheen of the protective coating covering the city like a glass dome.

Japan had long ago seen the worst of global warming and successive cycle of cooling. It wasn't until 2462 that Kraenn Kurosawa, a part-Japanese, part-Russian, part-something else native-born came up with the concept of what was known commonly today as 'The Bubble.' With the wickedly changing climate conditions ravaging Japan, the people needed something to protect themselves from the harsh elements.

With the arrival and rapid advancement of laser technology in the previous century, a dome had been developed that was easily expandable, expendable, and, most importantly of all, controllable. It was able to generate and influence any kind of weather that the citizens wanted. The dome itself took a good four decades to perfect, but it had finally been done and was erected just after Japan had its fair share of temperate climate and was starting to turn bitterly cold like everything else.

Five-hundred years later, Tokyo and its citizens lived in their bubble like it was still the 21st century and long-since forgot what the real sky looked like. Everything was regulated by the bubble that had to do with atmosphere and was programmed to run automatically according to the time of the year.

Looking up at the false sky with a dazed look on her face, she showed no sign of moving. Having stood there for a quarter of an hour already, looking up at the sky, she had received plenty of odd looks her way. To everyone who looked at her, she was just some girl, standing in the middle of a park, staring at a fake sky.

Finally closing her eyes, she looked around her—as if she had just woken up and was getting a bearing for her surroundings. The park was clean. They were always clean. The robots everywhere made sure of that. People didn't actually do anything anymore. Tokyo was a city that virtually ran on its own from the shops and even the lower branches of government.

Fluffing her pink skirt out a bit before proceeding, she crossed the street and walked down the busy sidewalk—not really taking in anything around her. The guard positioned to follow her moved from her spot on the bench reading the newspaper and blended in and disappeared with the crowd. Tomoyo was really too cautious sometimes. It couldn't be helped. No one alive other than Tomoyo and precious few others knew what _The Boss_ looked like.

Being pushed roughly to the side of a wall, she winced. The one responsible for doing so was a middle-aged man with a mean scowl on his face. She frowned at him slightly in displeasure and he glared at her before muttering a 'Watch where you're going,' towards her before pressing onwards through the mill of the crowd. Narrowing her eyes, she felt irritation crease her brow until it passed. It wasn't good to start axing common nobodies.

Deciding it was time to lose her guard, she ducked down her usual alley and pressed against the wall, tapping her pink-faced watch. Instantly, she heard the buzz and held still. Moments later the guard arrived at the dead-end alley and looked around alarmingly. Bodyguards who failed in keeping tabs on her often didn't live very long. She didn't care. Where there was one there were thousands more to replace them. Pulling out her phone, the black-suited woman muttered a few codes into it and snapped it shut before disappearing into the blend of the crowd.

Smiling, she kept her head turned towards her direction—incase she made a desperate u-turn. When something bumped into her, she yelped and was knocked over, falling to the ground on her behind. Looking up she saw a boy staring down at her with bright amber eyes. They looked clear. Innocent. Almost in awe, he stood there, staring at the girl he had just knocked over as the rush hour mill of the crowd had slowly died down to a few errant stragglers.

Belatedly coming to his senses, he gave her an awkward smile and offered his hand to help her up. "I'm so sorry, that was completely my fault. Are you okay?"

Taking his hand, she felt herself quickly pulled up so that it disoriented her slightly. On a second look, up-close, she blinked. He was already handsome as it was and the golden brown eyes only heightened his appeal. For a few short seconds, she scanned his appearance over. Although she felt that she had seen those eyes somewhere, she couldn't place from where. Chinese. By the looks of his clothing and the black backpack over his shoulder he was probably just a regular student—a kid.

"Are… you okay?" he repeated, brow creasing in concern.

Blinking, she shook herself out of her daze. "Oh, yes, fine, thank you. Don't worry about it. I…"

Eyes widening, she saw the familiar bodyguard turning the corner. Seeing her distress, the boy gave a quick look over his shoulder and turned back to her; grabbing her hand. Bolting down the street with her in tow, she turned back around and saw the bodyguard starting to run after her—having caught sight of her again. Holding her fanning hair against the speed of their chase, she had no choice but to go wherever this boy was taking her.

After ducking down a few alleys, and through a building, and down a fire escape; they ran back into the park as the boy fumbled for something in his pocket. Swinging around the large trunk of a tree, he pressed her against it, attaching a hairclip to her hair. There was a buzzing sound in her ear and her eyes widened as he leaned close—touching their foreheads together. The boy's soft, warm breath passed her lips before she pursed them shut. Up close, those eyes of his only looked more attractive—looking in the direction of their pursuit. The heeled footfalls of her bodyguard on the pavement approached and passed them completely by.

"She's gone," he said, looking back at her. Jumping a bit, eyes widening, he backed up, almost falling over, holding a hand over his mouth, yelping an apology.

Smiling, she pushed her messy hair behind her and stopped when she saw black strands replaced her brown ones. Touching the clip in her hair, she felt its shape; it was that of a flower. A device. A portable disguise. Looking down, she saw that it looked like she was wearing black jeans and a red vest over a white T-shirt.

"Are you a Devicer?" she asked, blinking up at him.

Eyebrows perking, he blinked. Lifting his hands up, he waved them at her reassuringly. "No, no, I'm not, honest. I just… get bullied a lot so I've learned to escape pretty quickly and pretty successfully. Those things are stupidly expensive, but not as uncommon as people think."

Grinning at him, she raised an eyebrow. "Those who say they're honest are usually liars."

Laughing, he shook his head. "Are you kidding me? I couldn't lie to save my life! My name is Syaoran, by the way," he said, holding his hand out, smiling. "Nice to meet you."

Eyes shifting down at his outstretched hand for a moment before they swung back up to his face, she clasped her hands behind her back; cocking her head at him. "Kin. Sakura Kin. It's short for… but you can call me Kin. Sakura is fine too, I guess."

"Sakura…" he repeated slowly, as if testing her name. "The name of a flower, right? A pretty one. That was pretty intense back there... Why were you being chased?" he questioned as a look of confusion bridged his brow.

Sakura smirked. "Haven't you ever heard of a wild flower?"

***

"…call for change! Peace! Freedom! Gentlemen, I ask that you grant me your support to make these changes happen! I have no desire to see the travesty that occurred to me to happen to any of our citizens! As the current and long-time president of Federation, I promise you, the good people, that I will do everything in my power to ensure your safety against all that threatens you!"

The man up front gave a hard-pressed stare into the small crowd in front of him and millions of floating, flashing cameras, creating a perpetual spotlight on the stage. Closing his eyes dramatically, bowing his head, he let out a long sigh before continuing.

"A couple years ago, I lost my most precious thing in the world, other than my beautiful wife and son, to the disease that attempts to rot our peace and security from within. My daughter. Barely even four when she was stolen from me. Right now… I don't even know where she is," he said, holding a hand up to his temple as if the memory pained him and he was ready to cry at any second at the cruel reminder.

There were a few gracious nods from the audience in front of him. The story had been told every once in a while and always, somehow, managed to draw out the same sympathetic emotions that had kept him president of Federation for the last thirty-three years without fail. The man was certainly ambitious—ambitious enough to have stolen the presidential seat when he was only twenty.

Pounding a hand on the podium, he looked back into the eyes of his audience with conviction. "Know this: I fight only for the sake of the people! I won't allow the travesty that happened to me happen to you! Federation will flush out the deviants that prey on the weak and innocent!" he declared proudly, pounding his hand on the podium once more for effect.

After a few more moments of blinding flashes, and the denial of billions of questions by the media, the president exited off the stage and sighed in aggravation. Standing by the door of his only exit was probably the bane of his existence and he scowled accordingly.

"Stop using her as a scapegoat, Dad," he said threateningly, staring straight ahead as the president passed him.

Snorting, the president continued on through the door, ignoring his son. Sonomi Daidouji, his secretary, sister-in-law and Chief of State Affairs, scowled at him as he came into view. They bore a mutual dislike and the only thing tying them together at all was Nadeshiko. Cradled in her arms was a clipboard. As he came closer, the scowl turned into a smirk.

"I can't believe you gave that sop story again, Kinomoto."

"That's _President_ Kinomoto to you, Daidouji."

"It's disgusting," she said without hesitation, stepping in tune beside him. "I heard you passed a new legislation without my knowledge. _Again,_" she added with emphasized displeasure. "You'll have to inform me of these dumb regulations you keep passing. People aren't animals and don't need to be tagged and marked like you want them to so you can 'ensure their safety' by 'violating their privacy' to do so."

"Will you just shut up?" he hissed. "Frankly, your libertarian views are starting to grind on my nerves. I didn't tell you about it because I knew you would object."

"With good reason," she shot back, her voice pitching higher.

Sighing, he entered his office where Nadeshiko was spinning around in his leather chair, coming to a full stop upon seeing the two of them enter his office suite. Giving her a small smile, he turned back to Sonomi with a patronizing look she only glowered at. Folding his arms in a conciliatory manner—he didn't like to argue with his wife's cousin in front of her—Fujitaka prepared to make some compromises.

"Fine. What do you want to do about the legislation that will make you happy and get off my back?"

"Torch it."

The frown deepened.

Before he could open his mouth to retort, there was a gentle hand on his shoulder and he looked into her worried green eyes. "Darling, the legislation is a bit extreme... I think…" she added, casting her eyes downward.

A triumphant smile passed Sonomi's lips and she folded her arms over the clipboard exultantly. When Nadeshiko was on her side, it was just about impossible to win against the woman who was only his secretary. Right about now he wanted to strangle that disgusting smile off her face.

Shoulders slumping, he rubbed his temple. "Alright, alright, I'll make some amendments."

Nadeshiko brightened.

"Thank you. I know Sakura will be happy… wherever she may be right now. I just hope that she's safe and happy somewhere…"

Sonomi shot him a dangerous look and Fujitaka merely hugged his wife tightly. "Me too, dear. I'll be home in a couple hours; I need to discuss a few more things with Sonomi and in time for dinner. I don't know about Tory, you'll have to call him yourself. Love you," he whispered gently, placing a kiss on her forehead before ushering her out the door.

After closing the door behind her, he turned around to see Sonomi leaning against his desk. Her arms were folded in their usual unhappy manner and the reticent frown on her face saying more than words ever could. Fujitaka sighed again, walking around past her to sit in his chair. Sonomi turned around and slammed both her hands flat on the desk.

"You bastard. You haven't even told her the truth yet! That the only reason you have this seat right now is _because_ of your daughter; that you've been lying to all of Federation these past thirty years!"

The frown returned.

"Sakura was a necessary sacrifice."

Gritting her teeth, Sonomi leaned over and struck him across. The crack of sound shot through the air and was absorbed by the walls lined with bookshelves and hundreds of books. The President didn't even move. With a disgusted look, Sonomi turned around and walked towards the door, pausing for a moment.

"You're a cold-hearted bastard, Kinomoto."

The door swung shut behind her and Fujitaka swivelled around in his chair, looking out the window behind him.

Federation's President could only offer a smile.

***

The phone buzzed, slowly crawling across the table. Li rolled over and glared at it. The glowing letters hovering in the air with Kero's name scrolled in a marquee. Glaring at it a little harder, Li closed his eyes until the phone fell off the nightstand. Popping open of its own volition, the image of Kero wearing a hat to cover his hair and dark thick glasses popped up. The phone started to hover—adjusting to its owner's height. Even in the dead of night, miles and miles away, Kero still somehow managed to bother him.

_"Li! You awake, man? Listen, I don't have much time to talk to you—"_

"So don't," Li supplied snappily, rolling over.

The phone annoyingly swivelled around in the air, bringing him face to face with Kero once more. Li chastised himself for not shutting that feature off for some reason. There was a glare on Kero's face and Li groaned, hugging his pillow tighter to him.

_"Listen to me when I'm saving your sorry ass, Li. Look, I ran into some news recently about our beloved Feds. You know the Kinomoto family that runs Fed? Well, turns out they have some nasty secrets. Remember when I told you about The Boss? Li! For damn sake's man, listen to me!"_

Sighing in exasperation, Li glanced up at the time. Four-thirty-two; AM. Shifting his weight, he sat up in bed, looking blearily at the glowing face of Kero. Letting out another sigh, frustrated, Li hugged the pillow to his stomach.

"This better be good, Kero."

_"Damn straight it is. Anyway, you'll NEVER guess who The Boss is. The Boss is a chick! Her name is actually Sakura Kinomoto. The thorn in his side this entire time and his ticket to presidency is his own friggin' flesh and blood! Can you believe that?"_

That name sounded familiar for some reason.

_"Here's a picture. I'm sending it over."_

Another display opened to the right and showed the picture of a cute little girl with striking green eyes and short auburn hair. Cute kid. Nothing special. So the big, bad, scary Boss was actually a chick—big deal. The women in the Qi'shu were legendary demons before they got snuffed out.

"Cute. So what?"

Kero frowned. Li never truly appreciated the information he got from Kero for free. They both knew it.

_"You know what, Li? You need to turn off your jerk switch. Here's another picture of what she might look like today."_

When another picture opened up on the left, Li's eyes widened in horror.

Sakura Kin.

Sakura Kinomoto.

* * *

First and Second-Last Note to Reviewers:

If you like it, please review. If you hate it, you're more than welcome to review as well, but please tell me at least _why_ you hate it. Gosh. That's immature if you don't. Also, as a first and semi-final note to everyone, the speed at which I update this particular story (or whether I update it at all) is based entirely on you. If you want to know what happens next, well, let me know and I'll be happy to tell you. If you don't, I'm taking that as you don't care or you have stopped reading it. I enjoy writing and plan to finish this story for personal reasons. If you want to read the rest of it, please review and let me know otherwise I will leave you in the dark.

Ahead of time, thank you for everyone who has, will and plans to leave me a review for _Liar Game._ I'm very much obliged. The only reason I post my writings up online anywhere is all for you guys. So, with all that said, I hope you enjoy my tale of destruction and deceit; that my lies become your obsession and you don't get too caught up in the game at hand.

Please R&R.

- Minute Maid

Beverage of Queens.


	2. Between the Lines

Chapter Two: Between the Lines

_"…legislation has been passed; consoling the fear and unease of the general public. Though President Kinomoto had nothing further to comment on, Federation Senators are assuring that the changes were long in process and won't affect daily life. State Affairs Chief, Daidouji Sonomi, gave her assurances earlier this week that the legislation was, in fact, not active surveillance of Federation citizens. Further details remain to be released on Legislation RS-572. Meanwhile, Federation Scouters are still on the look-out for the supposed Devicer responsible for the break-in and theft of the Federation facility located in Boz, Russia. Current whereabouts are unknown while Russian authorities are denying the escape of a Federation criminal past their borders. Secretary of International Affairs Kerrian Mazti had this to say."_

_"You damn Federation monkeys need to stop blaming o'der countries for everyt'ing you lack. Russia's borders; she is impregnable, and any Devicer z'hat vants to enter our country vill be entering it full of mordite. Stop sitting on your damn 'ands, and your idiotic justice system you lousy bureaucrats, and get up and go do somet'ing about your shortcomings."_

_FNN, June 8, 3041._

_***  
_

No matter what anyone else would say about it, Viridisa was _not_ cold. In fact, Executive Chairman Lydic Verell found it just right the right temperature to put him in the perfect mindset to get things done. Never mind that space was ten times colder than it ever would be on Earth, Lydic preferred his offices to be what his past secretaries have named to be absolute zero conditions.

With the way things had turned out and slowly frozen over on Earth, it was the most appealing option to simply jut out into space and live there. As a result, the EX TERRA group was created. Eventually it grew into something as monstrous as Federation—only in space. Lydic would've preferred to name it IHF as a short acronym for _I Hate Federation_, but his executive board of directors thought that the name would be, at best, offensive to certain people. Lydic only scoffed and went ahead and made it the unofficial, unreleased name much to the directors' chagrin.

Earth had witnessed hell and back in the past couple hundred years. Weather patterns had suddenly spun out of control beyond any silly predictions meteorologists made back then. It turned out that the few degrees it got hotter all over the planet was really a drop in the bucket. Mainly, it was because the sunspots all disappeared by 2436 and by 2457 temperatures dropped dramatically, plunging the world into its second ice age. Since then, Earth had become a big ball of ice.

As a result of the rapid cooling, many cities became overpopulated while many more became deserted as people moved to warmer climes and cities closer to the equator. Like rats scurrying for warmth in the winter, Lydic thought. That was the time that Federation had started to gain some _real_ power; before it was just another one of your average corrupt corporations. Like an overnight success, those Federation stooges finally tipped the cup and took it all, becoming their own government. Although, Lydic would always argue, it was just an excuse to create a dictatorship. It helped when you supplied enough funding to eighty percent of the world's governments that you pulled the strings from behind anyway. The threat of non-funding was a little more than some countries could handle and thus became sucked into the black hole that was Federation.

Sitting in his chair with a deep-seated frown, Lydic stared at the ball of ice that was once home. Currently, there were over three million escapees that had chosen to live artificially in space when the blizzard hit. Despite that, there were still another ten or twelve still on Earth, clinging to whatever heat they could. You couldn't see anything from space anymore. Everything had either frozen over or became covered in a blanket of snow. Even if Hell hadn't froze over yet, Earth certainly did. The Great Wall of China even bowed in defeat to the snow and was currently buried in probably something like a mile of snow. Something like that anyway.

Some parts of Earth got it worse than others, of course, and the equator got the least of it. What bothered him most about the situation, however, was that he'd probably have a complete monopoly if that Kinomoto guy hadn't come into office and stayed there for thirty-three agonizing years. Federation was quickly losing support in the Bubble City and that meant good things to Lydic, but bad things for the Feds. The Federation President was only seven years his senior, but he despised every second of power it earned him.

It came to no surprise that, when Tokyo came into view, shining like a blazing beacon of colour, Lydic's frown deepened. There a thought struck him.

"Lydia, open up the comm-link. I want to address my people."

A sneeze came from his left in response.

"_Nakuru_." There was a sniffle and Lydic turned to his shivering secretary.

Brow furrowing, he frowned at her. Not because of the first-person address either. "What?"

"My name isn't Lydia, that was… ah… ah… ACHOO!" Another sniffle. "That was the name of your last secretary. And they aren't _your_ people. They're all citizens of Viridisa."

Nakuru was the best damn secretary Lydic had ever had. Organized, thoughtful, good at her job, didn't complain about his office temperature, and, best of all, she was hot. Only she was somehow related to him. His cousin's, husband's, uncle's, nephew's, wife's, sister's—whatever. Point being, she was hot and related to him, and thus off limits, and he couldn't fire her even if he wanted to. All of that worked out perfectly for Lydic because his last five secretaries quit because they couldn't stand him. If she were closer to his age, he'd probably marry her. Then again, if she were closer to his age, he'd probably never have hired her in the first place, so never mind.

Waving it off, Lydic nodded his assent. "Yes, yes, whatever. Just put me on."

Nakuru sighed and pressed the button that would project his voice to the entire space colony. The comm link buzzed to life and the mic floated in front of Lydic's mouth. It was only meant to be used in the express purpose of an emergency or otherwise, as every other message was just sent through regular mass produced electronic mail. Even so, it was a toy that Lydic had the use of that he just couldn't resist playing with. His image on holographic view screens everywhere could be heard popping up all over the space colony.

Lydic could hear his whiny board of directors complaining about his 'unnecessary' use of the comm link for the fifth time this month already.

_"Citizens of I Hate—"_

"Chairman!" Nakuru hissed with that scandalized look of hers.

_"Fine, fine,"_ he conceded. _"Citizens of Viridisa—are you happy now?"_

Nakuru rolled her eyes.

_"Look upon the cold splendour that once was beautiful,"_ he continued; turning around himself to look at the big ball of ice that mankind called home._ "And thank your God, namely me—ow! Ow! Naku—stop that!"_ he screeched; feeling his ear being pulled and twisted. _"Jeeze woman! Iron grip! Hey, what are you—"_

_***  
_

Kero winced at the loud shrieking coming over the communication system, followed by a series of muffled cries before finally shutting off. Shaking his head, he sighed, strolling up towards the ExTerra government building where that screeching was coming from. The guards at the door eyed him suspiciously, but they let him pass without complaint. They always did.

Securing a ticket off-planet just to get to Viridisa was difficult enough as it is, but getting one after Li's face had been framed to half the planet was even worse. Everyone who knew Li knew that he was associated with Kero. If he didn't hate working with Reed and his eccentricities so much, he probably would've never partnered up with Li in the first place. Good thing he did, Li was worth ten times his weight in salt than any Devicer he had ever seen. Well, except for Reed. Especially that stunt Reed pulled back in 3013 when he stole the hairpin worth at least a million clicks of a woman only ever known as Yuuko right in the middle of one of her parties. After that ordeal and escaping to several countries, it was safe to say that Reed was content with his career and infamous status to retire. Enough to make even Kersch jealous.

Once you were on Viridisa though, it was cake to get anywhere since they separated from Federation eight years ago. It was a Devicer free-zone and Kero made sure to have friends in high places here when he heard about it. Not only that, but he needed somewhere to fallback on just incase Li screwed up like he did this time. Bringing Li here wouldn't be a good idea—despite being safer than staying on Earth.

The screens that had just closed all over the space colony opened once more and the image of some girl—probably the owner of the reprimanding voice earlier—came into view.

_"Dear citizens of Viridisa, the Chairman humbly asks your forgiveness and sincerely apologizes for the disruption of your day. He's sorry for the inconvenience."_

Stifling a laugh, Kero shook his head. "I'll bet he's sorry; Lydic you conceited airhead."

Riding the elevator to the top floor, ignoring the obvious stares received from the employees working in the building riding the same way, Kero arrived at the executive suites. Exiting off the elevator and heading down the main hall towards the Chairman's office, Kero smiled upon seeing the familiar gold lettering on the door reading _King Lydic Verell_ so large that even a bat could see its lacquered expression of extravagance.

Without even knocking, Kero entered the room.

"Lydic, be more reasonable! The directors will throw a fit!"

"Hey, lady, _you_ were the one who pushed the button to let me, remember?"

The woman growled angrily at him. "I thought you were going to deliver a _friendly_ message to them! One that _doesn't_ start a war with Federation!"

"You've been working for me _how_ long? How well do you know me, Lydia? Obviously not very well."

"NAKURU!"

Kero coughed and they both turned their heads in his direction. Like a bickering married couple. Nakuru straightened herself out and let go of the Chairman's collar. Lydic merely rearranged himself before getting roughed up by his secretary and offered Kero a bright smile before clasping his hands on his desk in front of him. The perfect image of a politician.

"Kero! So good to see you! Why are you here and why are you _still_ here?"

Kero smirked. "Blunt as always, I see. I feel sorry for the little lady there." Digging into his pocket, he took out the black silk bag and opened it, dumping the silver box out on the desk. Tapping it a few times with a metal stick, a keypad opened up and materialized in front of him. After inputting a few numbers quickly, it disappeared and the tiny silver box opened without another fuss. Inside was another tiny little box—only red and velvet.

Picking it up, he snapped it open, showing it to Lydic. As expected, his eyes bulged out of his sockets and even the secretary put a hand over her mouth after gasping. Kero could see it: this troublesome little box full of contraband was practically sold.

"Kero; friend; accomplice; martyr; saint! Absolute saint! That's what you are. Is this a birthday present? For me? How kind of you—"

Lydic reached out to grab the box out of Kero's hand but it was quickly swiped away.

"Nuh uh, compadre. Me amigo and I went through some serious stuff to get this little gem. I'm not settling for anything less than a million clicks this time."

Sputtering, Lydic reached around his throat, gagging. "You're joking. You're serious! Kero, we've been friends for a very, _very_ long time, right? That should give me a hefty discount in my opinion."

"You know what, you're right. We _are_ friends. One million three thousand clicks if you please."

Lydic's fist slammed on the table as he gagged again, doubling over as if in pain, gasping for air. "That's what I get for friendship, huh? Fine, fine. I'll bite. You know I'm the only one willing and stupid enough who will anyway."

Kero grinned. "Great. One million three thousand and not a click less. You know who to credit." Closing the velvet red box with a snap, Kero placed it squarely on top of Lydic's desk, sliding it towards him—specifically in front of his glazed eyes.

Swiping it up greedily, Lydic rubbed it against his cheek affectionately.

"Chairman, just what is that? I mean… aside from _what it is._"

"This, my dear, Lydia—"

"Nakuru."

"—right, right. This, my dear, Nakuru, is defeat in a box! Specifically Federation's!"

Kero laughed, giving him a mock salute before heading back towards the door. "Enjoy yourself, Lydic! Go to town even! I'm going to hang around home for a while before going back to the big ol' ice ball again to pick up my associate. Ciao."

Walking back out the office suite and down the elevator, he walked past the guards again. Of course, they eyed him suspiciously, but they didn't say anything about it.

They never did.

***

The tea was cold.

Sakura despised it cold but she kept stirring at it anyway. The water swirled and she imagined it to be similar to an ocean which she could drown in. It was also just the right colour—of warm golden brown. It was like autumn—although she had only ever seen a fake one. Federation was to blame for that. For this bubble. For Tomoyo. For her life. Everything. All of it. Federation was to blame.

Scooping up a small amount of the clear liquid with the spoon, she held it up to the artificial light of day and watched it change from the dull golden brown to a sparkling one as light passed through it. Tapping her finger on the table impatiently, she looked out the window to her left before turning back to the small amount of golden fluid. When the bell chimed, her attention was drawn to the door. Immediately she saw black hair.

A loud clang sounded and she looked down. Sakura had dropped her spoon and the small amount of tea had spattered on her clean blue dress. Shoulders slumping, she sighed in dismay. At least it was only a little bit.

"Sorry, Sakura, did you wait long?"

Looking up at the address, Sakura blinked before smiling pleasantly as Syaoran sat down across from her. "No, not at all," she covered with a smile, pushing the cup of tea away from her.

After all, her tea was cold.

When the cold cup of tea had been removed, Sakura placed both elbows on the table, resting her chin in her hands. Staring into Syaoran's eyes, she was suddenly reminded of golden brown leaves. When Syaoran pursed his lips and shifted uncomfortably beneath her gaze, she blinked a few times and looked away apologetically out the window. Across the street Mace—one of the thugs under the heel of her boot—was conducting a drug deal in broad daylight.

Detachedly watching him for a few moments she snapped her head back when the clank of a cup landed down on the table. Coughing to break the silence as Tomoyo walked away again to attend to other customers; Sakura shook herself out of her daze for a bit.

"So, Syaoran, you're from China, right? Tell me about it. I hear that the Qi'shu are a scary bunch…" Behind their table, she caught the pointed stare and slight shake of Tomoyo's head as she pressed a finger to her lips. Mentally, Sakura bit her tongue. Syaoran was a normal, ordinary college student that probably didn't know anything about her world in the same way she knew nothing about his. What she wouldn't give, she imagined, to be in his shoes instead.

Syaoran laughed nervously. "That… You know, ordinary people are even afraid to whisper their name in China let alone say it out loud like that. Japan… really must be safe. I don't really know much about them. All I know is that China is better off without them. A friend of mine was… affiliated with their group. He… disappeared around the same time they did."

Eyes widening, Sakura felt her pulse quicken. "What was his name?" The question was a little too urgent and a little too needy and she only realized that after having blurted it out.

In reaction, Syaoran stiffened.

Dropping her eyes from his, Sakura mumbled an apology.

"A-Anyway," he stuttered, "Why did you choose this place? It's kind of… old fashioned."

Jittery glances sized up the look of the restaurant fixtures, complete with a music player disguised to look like a jukebox. A few pictures of someone named James Dean was pinned to the tobacco yellowed walls of the restaurant. It was actual wallpaper too.

"I like it," she shot quickly. In the back of her mind, Sakura winced. It came off a bit too strong there.

Syaoran shook his head, giving her an apologetic smile. "I'm not saying it's bad… I just… You like it, okay then. That's all I need to know."

While Sakura couldn't boast a normal life, she had attained adaptations to survive her current one. Sakura knew the look of fear when she saw it. Syaoran was afraid. For some reason or another, Syaoran was afraid. Afraid of her. No, he was _terrified_ of her. Why today when not yesterday? What had changed? And where did she see those golden brown eyes from before?

Seeing that Syaoran was obviously nervous and terrified, Sakura shifted uneasily a bit. This was her first time talking to a nice, _normal_ boy that _wasn't_ a criminal. With no prior experience as to what a normal nineteen year old girl would be like in this situation, Sakura picked up the new steaming mug of tea Tomoyo had dropped off casually and drank it.

"Sorry, Sakura, I'm… not very good at this. I was home-schooled in China because my parents were afraid for my safety. I only recently came here to study in Tokyo."

"Study…" she repeated softly. It was a word that she had never used, reeking of a normal crime-free life. "Study what?" Genuinely curious, Sakura leaned in over the table a bit more, fixing her eyes on his.

Another nervous laugh. "I… ah… well… I want to become a Scouter for Federation."

"You can't do that!" Sakura yelled, standing up from her seat.

Syaoran had jumped back right against the back of the booth, eyes wide in alarm. Realizing her error, she felt a hand cup to her ear and she tilted towards it even as her cheeks were flaming with embarrassment. Tomoyo whispered a few words and Sakura sighed. It was more trouble come pounding on her door. Letting out a small murmur of frustration, she felt Tomoyo's ghosting hands clear away from her ear as she floated away to better serve others with her complacent smile and warm serving etiquette.

Picking up her white silk scarf, Sakura tossed it around her shoulders. "Sorry, Syaoran, I have to go. Work. I hope… to see you again?"

Smiling sheepishly, Syaoran got up shortly after. "I just got here too…" Sakura's shoulder slumped in apology. "Yeah, sure. You know where to reach me." The boy held up his phone demonstratively.

Giving him one last warm smile, Sakura walked out the door of the restaurant just as a black car pulled up and she opened the door and stepped in without a second thought. When the car shifted into motion down the street, Sakura found herself twisting a piece of hair in between her fingers absent-mindedly.

The driver coughed prominently and Sakura turned towards him. "Where to, Miss Kin?"

"Kuro, take me to see _him._"

Kuro grimaced in displeasure but held back any barbs he might have. Looking back out the tinted windows with disaffected eyes, her eyes wandered back to the colour of autumn playing at the edges of her mind. The car was silent as it glided through the street silently and weaved in and out of the other cars in the traffic districts of Tokyo.

Skyline vendors lined the intersections, offering all sorts of services and fuel supplies. And Scouters. Always those damn Scouters. A large billboard image popped up and it displayed a picture of Federation's president. Sakura glared at the grim, but grinning face of her father advocating peace and security through iron chains. Falling to her side on the seat of the car, she blew out wisps of hair that had fallen over her eyes. Even through the dark sunglasses, Sakura could tell that her driver snuck worried glances at her every now and then like he always did.

When the car came to a stop, Sakura sat up reluctantly. Peering out the shaded glass to see the large pearly white gates with a large golden 'F' woven into the metal, Sakura turned her attention to the large building beyond them. The gate barred a pristine courtyard and fountain beyond; as well as the road leading up to the mansion. Sakura saw the driver roll down his window.

A view screen appeared and the grin on the man's face couldn't be wider. The driver shot him the dirtiest look Sakura had ever seen him give anybody as the screen disappeared and the gates dematerialized, letting them through. Though no words were exchanged, identities had been confirmed and no doubt security would be tight from then on.

When the door opened on her side, she stepped out daintily and touched the pin on her chest. The simple blue dress grew longer and ruffles appeared here and there. A large, matching peacock blue hat with a wide brim was set atop her head by her escort. A powder-blue feather stuck out from the base and bobbed lightly as she walked. With a nod to her driver, she faced forward and walked towards the doors of the mansion that opened at her silent behest. Stepping onto the chequered marble floor, she lifted her skirt ever so in a way that it would hover exactly one inch above the ground.

"Kurogane! Sakura!"

A blonde man with a rose-engraved eye-patch over one eye appeared. There were ruffles at his sleeve and neck and he was dressed like a medieval French man. Double-breasted ugly jacket, knee high boots and all. Bowing low he took Sakura's proffered hand and kissed it, never taking his eye off her. In this world, behind enemy lines, she couldn't afford to either.

"Beautifully pleasurable as always. What can I do for you today, my dear?"

Pulling a pin out of her hair, Sakura held it out to him. "Ten-thousand clicks, Fluorite."

Eyes perking at mention of such a hefty sum, he clasped his hands behind his back in a businesslike manner, fixing her with cool blue eyes. Sakura hated this man to pieces, but it couldn't be helped. Bargains like these had to be made every now and then in order to survive in this corrupt city. "Ah. Straight to business. As always. Black or white?"

"Black."

"Capulet or Montague?"

"Neither."

A smirk.

"You're asking a lot of me, my dear." His eyebrows rose, and he clasped his hands behind his back.

"A thousand more clicks."

"Money talks; as they say. Fine. It's done. We are such good friends after all. Right Kuro Kuro?"

Kurogane groaned.

***

"…so you want to be a Scouter? For what reason? You're such a nice guy; I couldn't imagine the reason for someone like _you_ who's obviously not Scouter material."

Li swallowed.

"Well, you see, Miss Ferris, my brother was killed by Devicers not too long ago and it made me stop and realize that a career in law might affect those brought to justice."

Vivian Ferris rose her eyebrows, clearly not believing him. Clasping her hands together, she tilted her head in a way that drove Li furious. "How so? The law is designed to protect those who are innocent, not play against them."

"So many times it does, however, not do its job properly and lets those guilty go free. The Devicer, you see, was caught but acquitted due to lack of evidence and eye witness accounts. There were witnesses. But they were all liars."

Vivian Ferris swivelled in her chair to her large, glass windows of her office building. Resting an elbow on her desk lazily, she glared out the window, as if every criminal that had done wrong were just in front of her and she was prepared to toss them in jail for the rest of their life.

Meanwhile, Li's nerves shook and his stiff back was so straight this past forty-seven minutes that it had begun to hurt about thirty-seven minutes ago. It might be because he was in a place he really shouldn't be; with people he really shouldn't be with. Li had never seen so many Federation guards, officers and other Federation firepower so closely stacked together. It might be that too. It might've been, but it wasn't. Right now, it was because of the hard-nosed Federation Scouter recruit agent in front of him that had the red eyes of a demon.

Slowly, a smile crept to her lips.

"You remind me of myself, Syaoran. When I was your age, I thought exactly the same thing. The government—no, Federation's systems of law were useless. What Federation needed was a highly-trained policing force _above_ the law in order to reel in justice and the scum that corrupt it. I was only sixteen when I started thinking that way and still do. I wonder if you're _perceptive enough_ to be a Scouter, though…" she hinted, sliding her ruby gaze his way.

Coughing politely, Li leaned over the desk and twined his hands together, staring at her intently. "You smoked up until two weeks ago and are still suffering from withdrawal systems. You are unmarried despite the ring on your finger and you're suffering an injury years ago with a sprained tendon, otherwise you'd still be dancing by seventeen."

Vivian Ferris' back arched like a cat that had just been rubbed the wrong way. Even so, Li kept his gaze. Being a thief for so long—being around Kero for so long, specifically, gave you impressive foresight into other people and what they were like.

"Yes, I wasn't ever married. It was all true and disgustingly accurate. How did you know?"

Li just smiled.

"Knowledge is power. Let me onboard your team and we'll find out."

Regarding him carefully, she swivelled her chair back to face him and tapped her pen on the table, staring at it pensively. Li knew the protocol. To be a Scouter there had to be extensive background checks on you and intensive training and schooling in the legal system and as a rookie Scouter. It was all designed to destroy your remorse and your feelings. To Scouters, you were either innocent or you were a crook giving them the freedom to arrest you on sight. No one made the teams so easily.

"When did I stop dancing?" she asked quietly. The rapping red pen stopped.

"You already told me. You stopped dancing at sixteen because of having a tendon sliced out, doing everything but refining you to a wheelchair. Above all else and any other part of her body, a dancer values her legs. You still do."

Vivian closed her eyes and bowed her head slightly, smiling. "It takes the average Scouter three years to deduct all that in so short of time. Many don't live for even two once taking the job on fully. It's almost like you're a Devicer."

Although the smile on his face was calm, Li felt like he had left the freezer to be thrown into the oven. Vivian Ferris was an astute woman—more than most—but certainly dumber than most too. If she had even been paying attention to him, she'd have realized by now that his back wasn't this straight because he was nervous about her. No, he was nervous because he could feel Tomoyo's eyes leering at him through the door a hall away.

After Sakura had left, the waitress he didn't think anything about sauntered over and sat down at the table after he had finished eating alone. The mischievous smile and twinkle in her eyes were unusually bright and unusually frightening. Li had caught the signals passed between them, and being in the middle of enemy territory had done a number already to his skills of perception. There wasn't a single damn safe place in Tokyo. So why did Kero send him here?

"I only know a bit about them. They're just computer programs after all. My brother was… he was actually a Devicer so I learned a few things about it here and there."

Vivian's eyes narrowed.

"I'm not a Devicer though; he wanted to keep me out of that circle."

"So he was finally ousted by his own kind then, huh?"

"That would be my middle brother. I'm the youngest. We both learned a bit of Devicing from him. I have two. Brothers I mean."

Vivian Ferris, Li had long ago realised, was a woman who didn't trust others very easily and was quick to take it away when she did. Fixing him with the meanest stare he had ever seen to date, Li suppressed a shudder. It was enough to rival his rigid mother's who insisted he study and train marital arts up until he ran away from home giving his contact information only to Feimei. Clearly a mistake on his part which he was still suffering for every now and then. In retrospect, Li couldn't very well blame the woman for her insecurities about him; he wouldn't trust himself.

Sighing, she leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes for a moment—as if reflecting on her own portrayal—or rather Li's portrayal—of her injusticed life of a dancer.

Standing up, she held a fist behind her and extended her other hand in a friendly handshake. The look on her face gave the meaning away clear enough to him however. Li stood up and took her hand, giving it a firm shake.

"You're at the top of my list for consideration, Syaoran, but I'll have to clear some issues and pull some strings. I'll give you a call later tonight and we can discuss the matter further. Let me congratulate you ahead of time." The smile was so stiff that Li thought it might crumble under pressure.

Returning his own thankful smile, Li nodded. "Thank you for your consideration, Miss Ferris."

Vivian snorted. "You Chinese don't seem to have lost a single ounce of that respect you had for elders after all these years. I wish Tokyo's young people were more like you."

"Don't you mean Japan? Japan's young people."

Dropping his hand, Vivian walked over to the window, smiling. "No, no I don't," she muttered softly.

Taking this as the cue to leave Li gave a slight bow; knowing it would reflect off the glass for her to appreciate it. When the doors swished open for him, Li stepped outside to see Tomoyo starting towards him, a wide grin on her pale face. As rich as she looked, you'd think that she had the time to eat properly. Forcing this to the back of his mind, he gave her a small smile, rubbing the back of his head.

"Viv's a tough ride, isn't she?"

Li blew out a held breath. "You could say that. How do you know this lady anyway? You don't seem like someone with a lot of connections to Fed."

Tomoyo shrugged. "We know each other personally. Shall we go grab something to eat?"

A vicelike grip took hold of his arm and she looked up over her dark sunglasses and underneath the rim of her yellow hat at him. The wheedling of her perking eyebrows and smile on her lips said that it was already a done deal.

"Sure… I guess."

"Great, I know a place that doesn't reek of old people!" she said enthusiastically, pulling him towards the large glass, double-doors that would securely get him past Federation security.

Li couldn't help but smile at the irony of Federation letting the one man they were searching half the globe for right out of their very own headquarters. Of course, it didn't help them that he was wearing his own deviced disguise, altering his appearance just enough. The strict guards posted at the doors both gave him a glare and he returned it with a mock salute and grin. If Kero were here he knew he would be up his back about it. If Reed were here he'd only clap him on the back, laugh, and probably smile.

Sometimes Li missed Reed. After the Mona Lisa and Yuuko incident, Reed had retired—thus cutting any form of communication to him whatsoever. Literally cut his hair and changed his name to do it. After cutting off all communications, Reed met Li one last time with the promise that, no matter how tough the situation and how much it might free you, telling the truth was a Devicer's worst enemy. Li didn't know how much he took that statement to heart.

"So how'd it go?"

Shaking himself from his thoughts, he turned to her. "Sorry? Oh. It went good. She said that I'm at the top of her list for considerations. Would pull some strings to get it done and give me the details later."

Tomoyo smiled—almost to herself. "Good, good. That's a nice dream you have. Becoming a Scouter and cleaning up the streets of _thieves and felons_."

The way Tomoyo had said it hinted that she knew more about him than she was letting on. Feimei had always told him to stay away from this type of girl. They would leave you dry and clickless. Despite the warnings, Li couldn't help but wonder if she was in league with Sakura—if they were just good friends and Sakura kept the distance of her wrongdoings or that they were in it together. If he had to place money, he had to say she was in on it too.

"Someone has to. What about you? What are your dreams like?"

A wistful smile came upon her lips and there was a glassy look to her eyes. Nostalgia. "I wanted to become a film editor. Make great classics like _Gone with the Wind_ and _A Bird for Birmingham_, or, or _Heivan!_ Before that I wanted to be a Scouter. The only dreams I have right now are full of…" Her enthusiasm seemed to have taken a dive and Li decided that it wasn't a matter worth pushing for.

Pocketing that to the back of his memory, Li smiled at her. Tomoyo was a nice normal girl—although he had, honestly, never met a normal girl once in his life. When he was living in China it was either private tutoring, martial arts or being raised as the only son in the Li family. There was no time for his life.

Placing a hand on her shoulder sympathetically, she turned to him and he offered a comforting smile. "It's fine, I get it. Something happened."

Casting her eyes downward, Tomoyo smiled sadly. "Yeah, something happened."

Finally, Tomoyo pointed out the place that they would be going to and Li squinted at the sign. _The Lion's Edge._ Where had he heard that before? Was it something Kero had told him once? Must've been, because it sounded awfully familiar.

There were, once again, guards posted at the door and Tomoyo dragged him inside without a second thought. The guards didn't seem to give it one either. The Lion's Edge was a quiet place and instantly the sound of sweet singing filled his ears. From the darkened balcony they had just arrived on, you had the perfect view of the stage with the lone spotlight. In front of a mic being clutched to her lips like a lifeline, was a black-haired beauty. Light sparkled off her thick, dark lashes and wiry curly hair as she sung sweet songs with no particular lyrics—or ones in some language Li had never heard of.

It wasn't until Tomoyo jabbed him in the side that he realized he was staring. Blushing courteously to her in the dark, he offered a smile by way of apology. Tomoyo was pretty cute herself. And normal. Don't forget that last one.

"Come on, I've got the front table reserved. You can ogle her better from there; but first I need to drop by an old acquaintance."

Li nodded and allowed himself to get led down the stairs to the bar, sitting down next to her on a stool. Instantly, a bartender with large but thin, owl-like glasses walked round the front, his friendly, approachable smile vanishing upon seeing her there. Tomoyo was leaning on the bar with both elbows propped up, resting her chin on bridged hands. The smile on her face couldn't be bolder if she tried.

Reluctantly, the bartender walked in front of them both, taking a hanging martini glass from in front of her and setting it down soundlessly. The grim smile took note of Li and gave him a nod by way of acknowledgement. Li nodded back slowly.

"D, what can I get you?" he said stiffly, not at all pleased she was here. The way he said it made it sound like he was receiving an unwelcome regular. Perhaps she was.

After a glance around the various empty tables, Li guessed he suffered her company more because he had to than wanted to.

"Beverly Hills with matcha on the top. He'll have a Firefly."

Another glance was passed Li's way, this time longer, before his eyes shifted back to Tomoyo. "Who is he?"

"Friend of the Princess. Don't be so uptight, Eriol, we're good friends still aren't we? We all were. You and I used to date, even."

Eriol snorted at that. "Ancient history, D." Shaking the mixer he poured out Tomoyo's drink first before quickly dealing with Li's. Crossing his arms on the bar, he leaned over. "Are you trying to make me jealous, D? Is that why you brought him?"

Tomoyo laughed, throwing her head back, almost spilling her drink before gulping it down as if it were a shot. The cup hit the table with a noticeable clink. Real crystal. Rare and useless in this day and age. It seemed that both Sakura and Tomoyo had habits to frequent old-fashioned restaurants and clubs.

"Not at all. I don't have to bring another boy with me to make _you_ jealous, Eriol. He's come to apply for a job here."

This time, Li coughed to interrupt and they both turned his way. "I'd rather not work in a bar."

Eriol scowled at him before turning back to Tomoyo, ignoring his complaint completely. "I'll see what I can do. I think Xiao'shi is hiring. Only takes Chinese. He should fit in nicely there. You know how to cook, boy?"

Li frowned in disapproval at his address, but knew it couldn't be helped. "Just a little."

"Yeah, he'll fit in nicely. Xiao's the only one with a clean record, unless you want I send him to Zhen's over in the Blue District."

"No, no, Xiao is perfect. More than perfect in fact. Anyway, gimme a Scarlet Hannah and I should be good for the night."

There was coughing again and they both turned towards Li. The only difference this time was it sounded like a dying man hacking up a lung to drain it of water. He had just taken a sip from his Firefly and it felt like he had just been put through hell and back. The liquid was like acid; burning all the way down, and not in a good way. It settled somewhere in his stomach and he felt like he would throw up right away. It was like skipping the drunken stupor stage and barrelling straight for the hangover. A hangover in a cup.

Tomoyo merely smiled as Eriol poured her another drink.

"Welcome to Tokyo, buddy. _No one_ orders the Firefly in Tokyo—unless you want to die young. Or you're new. I'm Eriol, by the way. Sorry for the late introductions." Eriol flashed him a smile that was only a touch warmer than his frosty reception of him.

Li shook his head, unable to do anything else or return the sentiment, as his eyes started tearing up. When Li started coughing again, Tomoyo rubbed his back soothingly. It reminded him vaguely of his mother and how she used to do it; when he was still considered a toddler by Chinese standards. That was a long time ago.

"He'll take a Blue Bell," she said with a wink and nod towards him, turning back to Eriol. Snatching up the Firefly from Li's loose grip, she knocked it back like it was water in one fell swoop before picking up her martini and heading over to a table near the front of the stage.

When Li heard the distinct clink of the cup on the bar, he looked up at Eriol, grinning.

"What's so funny?" he managed hoarsely, coughing once more.

"Nothing. How'd you run into D anyway?"

Li shook his head. "Just an accident. I met her friend Sakura first. She was in a bit of trouble so I helped her out is all. My name is Syaoran. It's nice to meet you. We didn't get to that part before."

Eriol smirked. "Likewise. You're a nice kid, Syaoran, so I'm going to give you a bit of advice. Stay away from those girls. They're nothing but trouble."

Giving a laugh less nervous than he knew he was, Li smiled down into his drink. "Aren't all girls trouble?"

When there was a tug on his arm, he turned to see Tomoyo—already a little red-faced. "Should I flirt with you to come make you sit down next to me? Come on Syaoran, our table's over there."

His eyes snapped up to the stage and they grew wider. The woman dressed in black was gorgeous. The slinky, sparkly black dress hugged her body in all the right ways leaving nothing to the imagination and looked like it would fall off at any moment. High black gloves and pale skin accented the dark, cherry red of her lipstick. It looked like she was singing for hundreds when it was just the two of them right now, not including Eriol and the doormen perpetually posted outside. Mesmerized, Li sat there, staring at her play with the notes reverberating around the room like crystal.

"She likes you, you know."

There was a light touch on his arm and he tore his gaze away from the stage to Tomoyo, who was smiling.

"I said, she likes you, you know."

Li blinked.

"Who? What?"

"Sakura," Tomoyo clarified, giggling. "She likes you. I just sent her a message. She'll be here soon. I've never seen her take to someone so quickly before. You must be something special," she sang.

Li gave her a tight-lipped smile.

"I don't know about that. Sakura is… kind of weird." Li shifted his eyes here and there for effect. He wanted to test the waters—to see just how much she knew about him. If she knew too much he'd probably be dead in the next ten minutes. Maybe less. If the odd sense of Tomoyo's close relationship wasn't enough to incriminate her in Sakura's crime circle, he honestly didn't know what was.

Smiling, Tomoyo looked back up onstage. "Sakura's had it rough as a child. Didn't grow up normal like everyone else. What she is now is the result. Be nice to her, okay? She likes you."

"Is that what she told you?"

"No. I can tell." She winked.

Light pierced the bar from the only entry and formed a beaming spotlight on the singer upfront—who didn't even open her eyes to look at it. It made Li wonder if she wasn't blind or just immune to distraction. Up on the balcony, Sakura entered the doors. There was a tall, built man wearing a suit and shades like the mafia beside her. She was still wearing that same blue dress he saw her in only a few hours ago. When the doors closed with a silent click behind her, she started to descend the steps before making a beeline to the bar, waving two with her fingers to Eriol who received her with a smile.

A laugh from his left made him turn back to Tomoyo. "Now that makes _me_ jealous."

When two drinks were produced, both blue in colour, Sakura headed straight for them, a smile on her face. The bodyguard was left at the bar and Eriol merely took to polishing his glassware unaffectedly—ignoring his newest bar patron. Sitting down in between Li and Tomoyo—Li had noticed Tomoyo moved over one for her—she set one drink down in front of her and the other in front of Tomoyo.

"Hey Syaoran, I got Tomoyo's message and now I'm here."

"And now you're here…" he repeated; slipping a look to Tomoyo whose eyes sparkled knowingly as she didn't remove her gaze from the stage. "Did your work go well?

Sakura brightened, as if she were about to tell him all about it. "Very well. Anyway, I want to ask you something."

Shifting his body language towards her, Li placed a hand in his pocket. His hand itched, ready to use his phone to escape if he had to. This Sakura was a little different than the one that left him. She was more outgoing, appealing and definitely not nervous. Yes, Syaoran thought, if need be, he could probably escape here with his life if he were found out. The adjustments to let it stun had been deviced into it before. It would take only 6.5 seconds to device himself a new disguise distinctly unique from the current one. Kero hadn't contacted him since that night two weeks ago and he had been trying to lie low ever since—only to find himself managing to do the complete opposite.

Not only was he making friends with the most terrifying person in the world whose nickname struck terror into the hearts of men everywhere, but he had also managed to come under the scrutiny to become a Scouter to keep his story straight and to some degree believable. A college student studying to be a Scouter. It was kind of ironic he was signing up to hunt down his own kind. Skirting enemy lines and flirting with danger. Tokyo was definitely the _best_ choice Kero could have sent him.

"Shoot."

The smile brightened even more. "I want you on our team."

"Sakura!"

Tomoyo's head had flung in their direction so viciously that her black locks went flying in a perfect circle around her. The drink in her hand was immediately slammed down, almost spilling, and she placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, gripping it firmly until her knuckles were white. Sakura didn't even flinch and continued to smile at Li.

Sakura grabbed his free hand and brought it to her chin with a pleading look on her face. Tomoyo's grip tightened.

"Please? Just the way you saved me that day, and how you're so handy with devices… you'll make a great addition! I'm sure! You don't have to be a Scouter!"

_"Sakura,"_ Tomoyo warned, eyes darkening.

Li swallowed, not knowing what else to do. He couldn't _work_ for Sakura—he had no reason to. Although he was a Devicer, he had only killed when necessary. The crooks like the ones under her command and the Qi'shu had ripped their hearts out long ago and had no remorse for anything they did or anyone they killed. Syaoran could even imagine the blood on her hands, painting them a sickening red. The green eyes that stared back at him were those of a murderer behind the innocence of a nineteen-year-old girl and he couldn't look away. Right now, she looked so innocent and naïve; like she wasn't asking him to become a thug under her control.

"I… ah…"

When his phone buzzed, Li was able to dart his eyes away from begging green ones and took his phone out of his pocket. Giving them both an apologetic look, he got up and moved to a dark corner in the room. Setting it to private, he clicked it, placing the line to his ear, where it shrunk and extended a mic to his mouth.

"Hello?"

_"Syaoran, its Vivian Ferris. I've got good news for you. Is now a good time?"_

"Er…"

Li looked up at the two girls at the table. Tomoyo had a reprimanding look on her face with both hands on Sakura's shoulders, shaking her slightly and talking in stern, hushed tones. Sakura was looking away detachedly—no, defiantly, arms folded. It couldn't become clearer to Li that he was going to get pulled into something worse than he could ever imagine. Hopefully Tomoyo would be successful. Supremely, he knew, Sakura was still The Boss. No matter the reprimand and wheedling Tomoyo dished out otherwise, the decision looked final.

"Yeah, I think so."

_"Great. Anyway, I've pulled some strings and talked you up real big with the big wigs upstairs and managed to get you on our rookie team. You'll have to start slow, but I'm sure someone like you can handle it."_

Li blinked. Life couldn't be worse for him. Finally, Sakura looked like she had stopped pretending to listen to Tomoyo and brushed her off, walking towards him. Tomoyo's shoulders slumped and she could be heard yelling at Eriol for a _Louisiana;_ irritated_._ By the smile and bouncy, ecstatic gait Sakura had, he could tell she had clearly won the argument.

"Please, Syaoran? Won't you?"

_"Syaroan, what do you think?"_

_"Take me... someplace... far away... Take me... to a true... elsewhere..."_

Right now Li couldn't suppress the feeling of wanting to just run.

* * *

Please R&R.

- Minute Maid

Beverage of Queens.


	3. Devicer

Chapter Three: Devicer

_"The matter of the debate is currently unknown, but judging by the accusations that ExTerra is making against Federation, authorities are willing to testify that it is one of national importance. Federation President Kinomoto assures everyone not to be panicked as this issue will be dealt with in due time. While President Kinomoto has no further words to those in Federation cities, the public situation between himself and Executive Chair Lydic Verell of ExTerra could not be more heated. The debate will be broadcast on live programming tonight to all channels. Chairman Verell is speaking out against the injustices of the new legislation currently in the works._

_"In other news, Kerrier Mining, one of the world's largest companies holding the market on goods like mordite and pyruveum had information stolen from them last week and are currently looking for the criminal. Traces of video imaging suggest to authorities the identity of the thief, but cannot be certain as the thief was wearing a distinctive mask. Although the CEO, Kirvan Kerrier, had nothing to comment on the situation, Kerrier reassures wholesalers that it is not a cause for alarm and business will be run as usual."_

_FNN News, June 28__th__, 3041._

***

If Li had ever blessed his luck, he took it back. While luck had played on his side during many jobs before, karma was starting to hit him real hard and real fast with this one. Right now, there was no one and no nothing he wanted to see or do other than sleep. Never more in his life did he appreciate sleep after a day of hard work, dishing out greasy Chinese food, and a hot shower.

The owner of the restaurant, Xiao'shi, was an excellent boss and chef. After the first week of hard work, he demanded that he move into the vacant bedroom upstairs in order to work even more full time—free of charge. Reluctantly, Li chose to do so and gathered up his one backpack, paid off the rest of his temporary apartment, and moved in the next day. It worked in his favour, because having a restaurant was a good front for a hide out if ever he needed one.

It was almost a month since arriving in Tokyo with no further word from Kero than the day he arrived. Long periods of silence were normal for them, but Li was getting antsy about the recent turn of events happening so fast. In the short span of nothing at all, he had become cohorts with the enemy of his kind and kind of enemy. Right now he didn't know what to think of Sakura other than to be terrified of her behind polite smiles and fake words and conversation. The fact that he was also now working for Federation on a regular basis didn't help thin his worry.

Fear of getting caught fraternizing with the enemy kept Li awake half of most nights. If the Feds found out he had become an active accomplice with Sakura's group, who had an actual name that didn't revolve around a nickname like The Boss, he would be cut, dried and examined torturously. If Sakura found out, he'd probably receive roughly an equivalent fate. Federation had eyes _everywhere_ in Tokyo, he noticed. So did Sakura. Anything there was to know, anything worth knowing, people knew right away. Tomoyo proved her astuteness in the matter of information tracking more than once.

Rolling over in his bed again, he picked up his phone and let the screen flash up with the time and date. Although he had received plenty of phone calls, five of which were from Feimei, none of them had come even remotely from Kero. Wherever he was and whatever he was doing couldn't be vaguer. Kero never told him about his business and how he knew so much. All that Li knew was that he did and they shared a bond thicker than blood to betray. With only twenty-thousand clicks to his current name, he had to look and act every bit the college student he was posing to be. Some part of his guilty conscience teased him every time Xiao'shi wished him a good day at school when he knew his backpack was full of a king's ransom in illegal devices.

Sighing reluctantly, he tabbed down his short list of contacts to find the only one he ever had for Kero, letting his hand drop off the side of the bed limply while it dialled the number.

_"The number you have dialled is no longer in use. Thank you."_

Li rolled his eyes. He never got through to Kero on this number; never had and probably never will. Even so, every time Kero called him, it would always come from this number. Before it had randomly sent him to other places, a trick on Kero's part to divert the call elsewhere, but now all he got was the wrong number message.

Not even have closed his eyes for three seconds, his phone buzzed and he looked over. The single letter 'D' was projected in the air above it. Li shied away from his phone, not wanting to get caught up in any more of their crimes. Last week it was a drug ring, yesterday it was crossing wires with an important Fed facility. Tonight… Li didn't want to deal with tonight.

Unwittingly, he had proven his aptness for devicing through a trick employed by Tomoyo. In the heat of the moment he was forced to manipulate a few objects while under the scrutiny of hidden violet eyes.

When the buzzing stopped, he let out a sigh and closed his eyes again, only to have the buzzing return and snap his eyes open.

"Talk," he said lazily, unmoving.

The phone flipped open under the command and he could feel more than see Tomoyo's look of displeasure on her face. One of the guys he met in the gang earlier had told him about Tomoyo. As pretty as a rose with big, ugly, laser-shooting thorns to match. No one he talked to knew anything about Sakura—other than the fact that he had managed to become her new favourite. According to him, the favourites never lasted really long enough to enjoy the perks it got you.

A tired sigh could be heard behind him.

_"I know you're tired, Syaoran, but we really need you for this one. Princess won't take no for an answer either. It's an important job,"_ she impressed firmly.

Li rolled over and supported himself on an elbow, squinting at her glowing image. "I'm not that great a Devicer, I already told you that. I can't… this is nuts. I've heard that you guys are worse than the Qi'shu."

Tomoyo smirked. _"Their entry fee into that club is worse than ours. They're all dead if you'd still like to join them."_

"You're a devil," he returned without restraint.

Long ago, Li had found out that you could say just about _anything_ to any of these guys when working. Tomoyo was no different. As long as he didn't cross that line off hours, he had nothing to worry about keeping his words in check. It was better that way, because he'd prefer to just look and listen; especially in his situation.

_"So I'm called. Now get your sorry butt in line; Princess is calling for you. We're going to turn those amateur skills of yours into that of the masters like the Masked Clown. Now that your lots in with ours, we need to squeeze the best out of you. Be here in ten,"_ she added firmly before the link closed.

Letting out a long, tired sigh, Li looked up at his ceiling. He already had the skills like the Masked Clown. Reed was the one who taught him how to device in the first place after all. It wasn't all that difficult once you got the hang of it. Although Li could do it easily, he had to admit that you had to have split-second timing to do it properly. The human mind and body could still only move so fast. Most Devicers nowadays had a chip installed in their head to get it done. Li never had the courage to ask Reed if he had one too. Some signs said he did, others said he was just born gifted like that. Either way, Li was pretty sure he didn't want to do something potentially fatal for something he could already do well.

Dressing all in black, he padded downstairs through the dark and empty restaurant and tiptoed past the glowing light of the kitchen. Xiao'shi was a dedicated chef who loved cooking and had restaurant sales to prove it. Every once in a while, when he would get up and 'work' for one side or the other, he'd find Xiao here, slaving away over a recipe book full of hundreds if not thousands of original recipes. Once he was past the light, Li's hands ghosted over the security panel and input the combination.

"Work hard, Syaoran," came the call from the kitchen.

Li smirked. Xiao'shi never failed to send him off.

"Thanks, you too."

Turning the knob and exiting the restaurant, he put his black gloves and hat on and made his way through the dark towards The Lion's Edge not far away. The bodyguards at the door were the same ones he had seen every time he passed by this place and he was tempted to reach out and touch them to see if they were real at all. Passing by one of them after turning the corner, Li pressed a hand on the door and it pushed open, cracking the dark din of the bar with moonlight.

A few glances were shot upwards. Some looked interested while others looked downright pissed off. Most showed indifference. To them, Li wouldn't be alive long enough for him to matter to them. This was the usual reception since being lassoed into this group with a pretty, green-eyed smile. They weren't keen on knowing about him and he shared the sentiment.

The same singer he saw singing up onstage the first time was currently sitting at the bar, chatting up a friendly conversation with Eriol. This time Tomoyo was onstage and Sakura was nowhere in sight. Sakura never was. Early on he found out that Sakura never showed her face to her own thugs. A select few even knew who she was while the majority had come to accept that Tomoyo owned their butts with her authority. Tomoyo herself was a genius in that she never took credit for anything and would offer her opinion that was often reverse to what Sakura would tell them to do.

A fierce grin came to her face and she eyed Li like a vulture observing its next meal until he sat down somewhere in the back. Eavesdropping a few conversations he quickly found out that everyone here was a Devicer and they were also all pulled out of the middle of whatever crime they were doing to come here or face the consequences. For the most part, they all looked like they could've been normal people at one point in time. That or they were using disguises and really looked just stone ugly.

A sharp crack from Tomoyo's whip halted the din and silence swept the Devicers, attentions were drawn respectfully to the stage. Li had never seen Tomoyo wear the same thing twice except in public. Right now she was wearing fishnet stockings with black Mary Janes. Black tights hugged her seat and a tailed coat with a white, ruffled show shirt would've hidden her gender if not for the obvious stockings. A single braid of black hair hung down around her front and a top hat sat furtively on her head with a wide white band tying a ribbon on the side. Something else Li had learned alarmingly quickly was not to ever comment on the things Tomoyo wore at any point in time. Ever. Not after that one newbie got shot between the eyes by her flashing magnum to apologize for doing so.

"Boys, gentlemen, I'm glad that you could make it out here tonight. You're all very fortunate to be here because, well, if you weren't you'd be dead right now."

Tomoyo paused to let her words sink into her audience. Li saw that the effect was not lost on many.

"A big job came in for us tonight and I need you all to do your stuff. We all know Tokyo is Federation's capital of the world, right? Well, tonight, her capital has received her antagonistic gem. Lydic Verell arrives tonight and brings with him something so heinous, so sinister, and so damaging to Federation that we _must_ have it."

Li swallowed and felt his heart race beneath his demure look. If _it_ was what he thought it was Li was a hundred percent certain he had shaken hands with that thing before. Apparently Kero had managed to pawn it off to someone. Right now he was probably still cursing at hearing the news announced earlier today. Despite never having met the man who ran Viridisa effectively, Li had heard a great deal about him through Kero. The man was a psychotic, childish genius out for Federation blood by any means possible.

A hand was raised somewhere in the middle. The boy was blonde with clear blue eyes and an unwavering expression—like he had seen it all and was unafraid of everything else to come. It could've been a device, but he looked just like Li; another kid. Somehow, he stood out more to Li. It could've been the similarity in their ages, but it also could've been that Li noticed he had been opening and closing his phone under the table the whole time.

The whip in Tomoyo's hand straightened into a rod, being pointed at the blonde kid. Tomoyo wasn't a Devicer, however, of that he was absolutely positive. That quick draw of hers suggested otherwise the first time he had seen it, though. After a second glance at the rod, Li realized that it hadn't just transformed into a rod from a whip but a long-barrelled, streamlined sniper rifle that could probably bring down a house miles away if it wanted to. Even so, Tomoyo was still a long cry away from even being an average Devicer.

"Shoot." Tomoyo said it with a wink and smile, cocking her head at him in amusement, gun unwavering.

The blonde kid smiled. "Who's the new guy at the back?"

Li stiffened. All head swivelled his way and Li suppressed a shiver that warned him of imminent death.

Tomoyo grinned. "Princess' new favourite. Don't touch him, or you'll be sorry," she sang, wagging her finger.

A few stares lingered on him and Li returned those ones uneasily until everybody was once again looking up at the front.

"Any other questions?" A pause. "Good. Onto the plans," she announced, tapping the rod on the ground between her feet with an echoing sound. "New guy, I want you to lead the way since I you already work there tonight. Relax, I've taken care of the details. You'll be the bell hop assigned to take Mr Verell's stuff up to his room. Give him a Firefly—on the house," she added with a wink. "Verell's staying at the Zalite Rose in the Yellow District and will be arriving exactly seven 'o clock tomorrow night. He's a chatty guy, so get as much info on him as you can from his loose lips."

As opposed to what he thought, none of the other Devicers complained about sending a rookie in. Other than the blonde's earlier comment, they didn't say a word. It felt like Li had joined the exclusive club within Sakura's group; not the rabble collection of common felons and thugs on the street. This was the group that controlled the organized crime in Tokyo and any one of these guys looked like they led average, everyday lives outside this room. It made him wonder where Reed picked up his talent for devicing. He never made mention of being part of any crime ring before. Li was perceptive; he would've picked it up if something like that had been mentioned.

"What time do I start work then?" he asked loudly from the back.

"Six on the dot and not a second later. If you're late, I'm going to shoot you."

Li swallowed.

"Mei, you're his backup; make sure he doesn't do anything stupid and use the blue wig for a disguise. You got caught with the red one last time, didn't you?"

A middle-aged man with black hair leaned back in his chair, folding his arms indignantly. "I wouldn't have if _someone_ just kept their nose clean."

A chair fell over and a woman on the far side of Mei rose, slamming her hand on the table, holding a fist up. "You wanna repeat that, you bi—"

A loud thump up on stage silenced the woman. Tomoyo held them both carefully with stern eyes—though Mei wasn't looking. "Argent, keep your cool. I don't want to have to make someone clean up your blood. Meilin, enough with the theatrics, we all know it wasn't your fault. Or yours, Argent," she added, turning her eyes back to the woman as she opened her mouth to protest.

Rather stubbornly, Argent sat back down and didn't say a word further, but shot a dirty glare Meilin's way.

"New guy, that's all you need to know for now. Mei will tell you the rest once Verell's had his complimentary sedative."

Li blinked. "I have to put a sedative in?"

Tomoyo laughed and a few others chuckled. "No, no sedative. The Firefly packs enough of a punch on its own. Just grab one from the bar in the foyer and give it to him before you take him up to his room. By the time he gets there he'll want to pass out."

"And then what?"

"And then Mei will take over from there. That's all I need you to do. She'll give you a disguise on your way out and Argent will cover your escape. Everybody else, you guys know what to do. Hit 'em hard, hit 'em fast and kill as many of those bastards as you can get away with. This is a white operation."

The Devicers all nodded their assent and quickly got up and left—some faster than others. The woman—Argent—stayed behind and looked like she was going to pick a fight with Meilin—who hadn't even moved since being dismissed. After a few more tense seconds, she threw a scarf over her shoulder and angrily marched up the stairs without a word.

Tomoyo hopped off the stage and came to sit down next to Li.

"So, what do you think? Your job is easy."

"Anybody can do it though, why me?"

Tomoyo grinned. Leaning over, she cupped a hand to his ear.

"Princess wants you to."

Li sat back to look at her incredulously.

"That's all?"

Tomoyo nodded.

"Xiao'lang?"

Li looked up and saw that the man called Meilin was staring at him, eyes wide. It was a strange name for a man, but he never questioned a Devicer's calling card. Most had five or six to go by. Blinking in confusion, he continued to stare at the man. Tomoyo darted her eyes back and forth between them, trying to make the connection.

Finally, Meilin took his glasses off and the disguise disappeared with a buzz. Li nearly gagged. Before him was his cousin that was supposed to be dead with her hair wrapped in chignons and wearing a red traditional qipao with a golden dragon stitched in for a design. Meilin had been shot in a drive-by shooting according to her father and never had a second chance. Shortly afterwards Li met Reed and learned how to device.

"M… Meilin?"

Meilin smiled and she lunged herself at him, throwing her arms around his neck, kissing him on the cheek. Sliding onto his lap, she looked at him with shining eyes full or relief.

"I never thought I'd see you again! But… why are you… well, here?"

"I ah…"

"Princess wanted him in," Tomoyo supplied.

Meilin turned to Tomoyo. _"Sakura did?"_ she asked incredulously.

Tomoyo nodded.

"So, Meilin, how did you get here? I heard you were dead. Shot in a drive by."

Meilin laughed.

"How did _I_ get here? How the heck did _you_ get here? Don't tell me you've become a Devicer!"

Li shook his head. "No, no! I just… I ran into Sakura and she… pulled me in onto the team… without knowing what this 'team' does. I came here from China to study. I'm… well, I _was_ going to become a Scouter for Federation."

Meilin slid off his lap, fixing him with a look.

"If you double-cross us I'll kill you."

"He won't," Tomoyo defended lazily. "Meilin, you'll have plenty of chances to see Syaoran from here on. Don't you have another job to do right now?"

Meilin sighed, her threatening attitude slipping back into a smile. With another kiss on his cheek, Meilin waved him off. "It's good to see you, Xiao'lang; don't worry about the job. I won't let anything happen to my baby cousin!"

Tomoyo giggled. "Baby cousin?"

Li sighed. "She's a year older than me. That's all. So… how…"

"Did she join our group? Same way you did. Ran into Sakura and that was that. Mei's an amazing Devicer. I don't know how she ended up in Tokyo, though. Got here illegally from what I can tell. Always wears her hair in chignons and a qipao when not disguised. Like she doesn't want to forget where she came from."

"Her parents were good, nice people. They cried for days when they heard she died."

Tomoyo smiled wistfully before getting up. "Maybe she did; in some ways. Get some sleep rookie, it _is_ late. I don't want you asleep on the job. If you mess up, I'll shoot you."

Li sighed, getting up and following her out. As nicely as she said it, he knew she meant it every time she did. Li never doubted that much. After Tomoyo said her farewells and disappeared off into the night, singing a song, Li retraced his path back to the restaurant. It was late and tomorrow would be a long day.

***

"That man's a bastard, Lydia."

"Nakuru," came the patient response.

"Right, right, Nakuru," Lydic amended. "What does he think he is? _God?_ That whole 'I am greater than thou' attitude really riles me up. Stupid Kinomoto."

Beside him, Nakuru didn't say anything. It was sometimes best if she didn't—especially when he was raving about Federation President Kinomoto. It was a common topic of complaint from her boss, but tonight it was particularly fierce and the fact that he was downing shot after shot of Blue Grass didn't ease the topic of conversation away. Quietly, Nakuru sipped at her martini that she had for the past hour since the debate ended.

"I'd plug a crap load of mordite in his stupid pie-hole if I could. People need freedom, not more rules. Why do you think my kingdom is so crime-free? Barely anything goes on that I have to visit one of Federation's dirty slums to see it in action!"

"It's not your _kingdom_, Chairman, its Viridisa. Anybody can live there."

Lydic snorted.

"And what does he call me after I commented so nicely on that note?" he continued, ignoring her chastise. "A _damn libertarian!_ As if! What's worse is that those Fed stooges are too busy licking his boot to see what the people need."

"And what do they need?" Nakuru ventured cautiously, sipping her drink.

"Kinomoto's head on a pike."

"Chairman…"

Lydic snorted again.

"Bartender, another round of Blue Grass!"

Nakuru's eyes nearly popped. If there was one thing Lydic could do it was handle his alcohol. Another round was probably pushing it though. Glancing at the nearby clock, she bit her lip. They should be checking into the Zalite Rose in the next fifteen minutes—not sitting in one of Tokyo's most exclusive bars. It was the kind of bar that mattered who you were seen with. Lydic never cared for his self-image and so secluded himself to the bar with only Nakuru to whine to.

The bartender turned around and eyed him. Nakuru shook her head discreetly.

"Sorry, you downed the last of it, buddy."

Lydic frowned. "You… what's your name?"

The bartender folded his arms abrasively. "The son of the guy you want to shoot between the eyes."

Nakuru gasped and put a hand over her mouth. Fujitaka's son had always been mentioned, but no one ever knew what he looked like. His face was the definition of media anonymity. That he was working as a bartender here wasn't what surprised her; it was the fact that he hadn't said anything to defend his father in the whole two hours Lydic had been sitting here complaining and bad-mouthing about him.

"Your father's a bastard," Lydic said without restraint.

"Chairman!" Nakuru hissed, scandalized.

"He is though!"

Nakuru stood up and bowed slightly. "I apologize on behalf of the Chairman. Come on, Lydic, you've had too much to drink." Placing a hand on his shoulder, she guided him away from the bar as he held the boy's gaze for a bit longer. Stepping outside in the cold air, she handed him off to their driver before going back in to apologize once more properly and clean up the bill.

There was another boy at the bar now, and Nakuru's eyebrows rose. Silver hair and warm hazel eyes arrested her on the spot and she swallowed. When someone bumped into her, she shook herself out of her daze and fumbled in her pocket for the item that she kept her money in. As she got closer, however, she realized that neither of them had realized she had returned and so she hid behind a nearby wall, just around the corner.

"…shouldn't be saying things like that about your dad, Tory."

"Yuki, what am I supposed to do? The man's been using my sister as a tool to get into office. He doesn't even care what happens to her."

The other one, Yuki, sighed. "Anyway, what do you think of his secretary? Pretty cute isn't she?"

Nakuru squeaked and held her breath.

Tory sniffed. "She is, isn't she? Looks more like a babysitter than secretary to me."

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Nakuru darted out from the wall as if she was just getting there and they both looked up at her. Now that it was just her, she realized just how good-looking they both were. After the messy break-up she had with her boyfriend back on Viridisa for taking this secretarial job, Nakuru didn't have time for anyone else other than the Chairman. So much so that she had almost permanently moved into one of the vacant rooms used for employees.

"I'm sorry. I really have to apologize for the Chairman's actions."

The dark-haired one, Tory, smiled. "Yeah, just like a babysitter."

Nakuru felt her cheeks burn.

"He really means well. Honest. Also, there's the bill—"

Tory held up a hand as she fumbled around in her pocket. Nakuru paused, gawking at his chocolate brown stare and amused smile. With that same hand, he wagged his finger at her to come closer. Blinking, Nakuru felt herself blush—hoping the low-lighting of the bar hid it adequately enough. Placing a hand under her chin, he gave her a soft, feather-light kiss on the lips. Squeaking, Nakuru jumped back, turning redder than before, clasping a hand over her mouth.

Tory smiled.

"Consider it paid in full."

His friend gave him a sly smile and turned away politely to polish glasses. Nakuru darted her head and gaze towards the exit, back at Tory's grinning face again and turned back to quickly escape out the door, jumping into the limousine next to Lydic.

"Nakuru, what took you so long?" he complained.

"D-Driver, to the hotel please!"

***

"Shoot."

Tomoyo flashed them all a wide grin and the silver magnum was whipped out, spinning around her trigger finger dangerously. Locking it into her grip, she pushed it towards the man's temple as he whimpered, dropping his cards and raising both hands in a desperate plea.

Li yawned and watched as the events unfolded. Sakura had invited him to come watch a game with her and he stood on one side of the blazing fireplace, watching the events unfold. This was the second time he had seen the 'game' and by now wasn't at all perturbed by it. Sakura laid down on the couch, out of sight, lazily, one arm slung over the edge of it. It looked like she was ready to fall asleep herself.

"You heard it from the Princess. Any last words?"

Although his back was to him, Li had seen his type before. There was fear in those eyes and it marked him for the coward he was. Just like last time, Tomoyo sat at the head of the table, facing in the direction of Sakura's couch—probably incase anything happened to her. Li could tell that she was watching the girl the whole time. When he looked at the ground, he could feel more than see the blood it was stained with.

The man seemed to swallow before his shaking subsided and he closed his eyes. "I apologize to my sweet Lisel, and that I love her—more than anyone."

Tomoyo's eyes softened.

"Aww. That's lovely. Warms my cold heart."

_"Shoot,"_ came the sharp reprimand from the couch.

Tomoyo closed her eyes. If Li hadn't known any better, she was suppressing a wince. Like the turn of a key, her finger pulled and the man stood there, wobbling for a bit before collapsing on the ground. The first of eight with seven to go. Some stared in abject horror as the man fell to the ground while others looked away—not wanting to get a preview of just what might happen to them.

The game, as Li understood it, was a punishment game for anyone who slighted Sakura somehow. This seemed ironic to him as he was willing to bet money none of them even knew who she was or even know their offence. After taking Sakura out for a walk one evening, canvassing the neighbourhood, he found out rather quickly she knew the names, faces and every crime committed by probably every crook, criminal, thug, and ex-felon to ever step foot in the city. _Her_ city. Tokyo's crime groups were not always as organized as they were today. Kero had told him it was only when The Boss came into power that everything had been suppressed significantly into the shadows.

Tomoyo had told him a bit about how they got to where they got to be, and these punishment games were part of it. To set an example of others, so that there would be no complaints on fear of death, they were held on a bi-weekly basis and randomly from time to time. Control through fear. The game hostess was always Tomoyo and she admitted that she had shot more men in this room than anywhere else in the city.

"Alright boys, let's deal out these cards of yours."

When Li's phone buzzed on him, he looked at the private display and he resisted the urge to give away his shock. Tomoyo didn't even glance his way, but he knew her attention was divided on him. Sakura, too, was now looking at him apathetically from her spot on the couch. When she closed her eyes again and shifted her head back to its usual position, he took that as permission to take the call. Slipping out of the room, he walked down the hall of the mansion and once again turned his phone to the private settings.

"Hello?"

_"Syaoran, I've got your first job for you tonight. A V.I.P. will be staying at the Zalite Rose and I want you to be his shadow. I've got informants telling me that he's being targeted tonight. It's your first big assignment. Since last week, you've been catching the eye of the higher-ups!"_

Li panicked.

"I… ah… Tonight?"

There was a pause and Li feared for the worst. _"Syaoran, this is an important step in your career! And it's such an easy job too. I doubt anything will happen. This is what you wanted right? To be a Scouter? The best of the best? I don't want to see hesitation out of you. Be at the hotel at six tonight, Mitzuki will inform you of the rest when you get there. Don't botch this up."_

Before Li could protest, the signal disappeared and he leaned against a wall, running a hand through his hair, closing his eyes. Another bang sounded out in the room and he knew someone else had met a similar fate as the first.

Li just wanted his life returned to normal. Working with Kero; spending clicks like they were water for amusement; placing and losing bets with Kero… all of that was normal for him. Li didn't want to be a crook; despite the nature of his work, and he certainly didn't want to join Federation. Somehow, in the span of a short month, he had managed to do both and his life had never been the same. Li desperately wanted Kero to call him—tell him anything. Lying low was harder than it should be. If only North America wasn't so uptight on their security he was sure he could've slipped past their borders instead.

Footsteps echoed in the dark halls of the mansion and he turned to see someone walking towards him. Wearing a vest over a black-striped white dress that fanned out like an umbrella, Sakura came into view. Black gloves and a large sun-hat with a white ribbon tied around it hung on her head as her wispy light-brown hair followed her like a soft veil. There was concern in her eyes and she stopped just in front of him.

"What's wrong?"

Li shook his head, smiling at her.

"Nothing. Nothing's wrong."

The worry disappeared and Sakura took him by the hand, pulling him along.

"Let's go for a walk then. You won't be needed until six anyway."

Li's voice caught in his throat at the mention of time, but he assured himself that Sakura didn't know anything about him already becoming a Scouter of sorts. Sakura could never know. Tomoyo had promised to keep it a secret. Even so, he had Sakura's favour—and that was better than any bullet-proof vest in this situation.

As soon as they left the mansion, cold air hit the both of them and Li gazed up into the sky and saw the wide, moon shedding a bright light over the courtyard they passed through towards the gate. It looked fake. Li had seen the real moon countless times on a clear night in China. This moon was too big, too perfectly round to be real. Even the stars looked off somehow. Despite the falseness of it all, Tokyo was the largest city on the planet right now because of the protective bubble surrounding it. New arrivals were a daily occurrence and many were even turned away due to lack of housing.

"I hate this city."

The statement drew Li's attention away from the sky and onto Sakura. There was a blank expression on her face and she had said those words emphatically. Sakura was a mystery herself. The story on how her life came to be what it currently was never came up and he didn't dare ask Tomoyo—afraid he might find mordite stuck between his eyes. If it was important, he would find out eventually.

"Why's that?"

Sakura looked up into the sky and her green eyes turned glassy. "I've never seen the real sky before. Have you?" she asked, turning towards him.

Li gave her a nervous smile and looked away. "In China, yeah. The moon here is too big and the stars look off. Earth is frozen solid, what can you do? The dome… protects people. Tokyo isn't big enough for everyone, so people go to Viridisa. Everyone else makes do or suffers."

Sakura seemed to consider him for a moment before looking back up to the sky.

"Would you… take me to China someday?"

"What?"

"To see the sky."

Sakura tightened her grip on his hand; as if she were afraid he would run away on her.

"It's cold in China."

"I don't care."

"No, it's _really_ cold in China. So cold that some people never leave their house. My family's rich and my sister works for Federation so we're fine, but many poor people starve or freeze to death."

Sakura's shoulders slumped although her gaze never left the sky.

Pursing his lips, Li sighed. "I guess we could visit sometime."

Sakura turned to him, brightening and genuinely happy. Taking hold of his other hand, she held them together to her lips.

"Really?"

"Really really."

The next thing he knew, Sakura had leaned up and kissed him briefly. Li's eyes widened and he took an involuntary step back. It was his first kiss and it was to the crime lord of world. Sakura blushed but never looked away, simply smiling. Li darted his eyes left and right, fearing prying eyes. When he didn't say anything, Sakura's gaze shifted to his chest.

"I… really like you, Syaoran. You're just… you don't treat me like everyone else does. Not like Tomoyo does or anyone else. You… it's like I'm a normal girl with you."

"You _are_ a normal girl, Sakura."

When Sakura looked up at him this time, she seemed a little lost. Sakura Kinomoto was every bit the terrifying Boss that the stories said she was, but she was also sweet and innocent in ways no one could ever imagine. Not only that, but she could be so gentle too. It made Li want to find out what happened so long ago to force her into this life. He couldn't imagine someone like her wanting to do this sort of thing for kicks.

Just as Sakura was about to say more, his phone buzzed and he fished it out of his pocket. The glowing ID read the single letter and Li looked to Sakura—whose eyes were still fixed to his phone. Clicking it, his phone hovered and the image of Tomoyo appeared. At first she was smiling and then a frown covered her face. Awkwardly, Li realized that his other hand was still in Sakura's grip and he dropped it to his side.

_"Syaoran, it's almost six. Get your butt over to the hotel. Game's over, Princess. Felps, Kurazawa, Dart and Dalton are still here with us."_

Sakura frowned. "Dalton's got the luck of the devil. This is the third game now."

_"He does good work though._" Tomoyo smiled. "_Should I shoot him anyway?"_

Sakura shook her head. "No, that's fine. Was he afraid by the end of it?"

_"Petrified."_

"Then that's enough. Syaoran, you should… get going. I'll see you later. Tomoyo—"

_"Kurogane's on the way to pick you up. Just stay there. Don't forget that no one is contacting you at the hotel tonight beforehand, Syaoran, only after. Mei's wearing a disguise with bright blue hair, you can't miss it. Ciao."_

The link disappeared and a sleek black vehicle pulled up to the curb. Sakura walked backwards towards it, still smiling at Syaoran. The stiff driver got out of the car and opened the door for her. Giving him a small wave before stepping inside, the door closed and Kurogane walked back around to the driver's seat without so much as a glance in Li's direction. It wasn't until the vehicle disappeared into the night that Li took a bearing of his surroundings. Right now he was in the Orange District, close enough to the Zalite Rose to make it on time.

Five-forty six. He had just enough time to get there.

_Six on the dot and not a second later. If you're late, I'm going to shoot you._

Surreptitiously approaching the hotel, keeping his eyes peeled, Li skirted around the hotel once. It was to get a bearing of any outside exits he might have to use incase his loose Devicer acquaintances failed in their job. This was all a wasted effort on their part, Lydic wouldn't dare carry something like that with him into enemy territory—not unless he wanted to use it _here_ in the heart of Federation. Theoretically, it could be done just as easily on Viridisa, where he could then hide behind politics and the large gap of space between the space colony and Earth.

Finally heading through the glass doors of the Zalite Rose, he immediately saw a tall woman with orange-brown hair while her eyes hid behind sunglasses. Always sunglasses. Everyone who didn't want to be known always wore sunglasses. Nobody ever wore freaking sunglasses in China. The Qi'shu took to wearing scarves over their mouths as a warning to others of their identity and unless you were a criminal, you'd never dare touch the things in your life. It made for some cold ventures outside in China.

Holding her watch up to her face, a screen popped up quickly before disappearing again. Unfolding her arms, she held a hand out to him as he approached her. Li took it and gave it a firm shake.

"Syaoran, Kaho Mitzuki; lead Scouter of Group S; pleased to make your acquaintance. Five-fifty-eight. You're two minutes early. I like punctuality."

It would be a long night.

* * *

Devicer (dee-v-eye-sir)

1. A person who has the capability to change the nature of electrical, mechanical, artificially intelligent or otherwise with split-second timing and near-perfect precision.

2. _slang._ A criminal who uses electrical, mechanical, artificially intelligent or otherwise tools.

* * *

Please R&R.

- Minute Maid

Beverage of Queens


	4. Scouter

Chapter Four: Scouter

_Name: Lydic Verell._

_Position: ExTerra Executive Chairman._

_Birthplace: Chicago, North America._

_Age: 46._

_Education: New Harvard; enrolled in business; majored in politics. Graduated top of his class in 3020._

_Family: Single child. Foster parents are Julie and Keeves Richardson. Unmarried, no children._

_Additional Information: Enjoys his drink and complaining about Federation's politics. Is almost always found near his secretary and displays childish behaviour from time to time. An accomplished orator and confident, effective Chairman of ExTerra. The lead in the push to separate from Federation, thereby creating ExTerra as the sole official authority on Viridisa. Has a long-standing grudge against Federation President Fujitaka Kinomoto for unknown personal reasons._

_Official File #428 710._

_Contents: Classified._

* * *

Li was petrified with fear. It wasn't so much because he was both Scouter and Devicer for tonight either. Primarily, it was because his target, Lydic Verell, was running late. Eyeing the bar nervously, he estimated that he had just enough time to grab a Firefly from the bar and pass it off to Verell once his car pulled up. Kaho Mitzuki, his senior Scouter, next to him, probably wouldn't make it so easy to give the Chairman his 'complimentary drink' either.

The shiny Scouter badge he had received only five minutes ago felt like a flag saying to every Devicer working for Sakura right now that 'Hey, I'm a traitor, shoot me between the eyes.' Beside him, Mitzuki didn't even bat an eyelash further at him after his debrief. In fact, she didn't even seem to notice his straining nerves and darting glances for anyone that might see the shiny silver badge and flush him out for the traitor he was.

Meilin, for instance.

According to Mitzuki, he was just supposed to take Verell to his room and guard him until his relief came by. Simple instructions, but he had no idea how he was supposed to manage getting them done at all when he was also supposed to be getting his job done for Sakura. All that required was passing a drink off to him.

"Be on alert."

Li nearly jumped at the comment. Glancing out the window, he saw a girl leave the vehicle, leaning back into the car and tugging on something, or rather, _someone_. Darting a glance to the bar, he fidgeted.

"Grab something if you're so nervous. I won't tell." Mitzuki winked at him conspiratorially and Li shifted uncomfortably.

The woman was weird.

Even so, he couldn't thank this lucky break more. As he caught sight of a waiter carrying one of the orange drinks, he expertly slipped it off and let him pass by empty-handed. Glancing back out the blue-tinted windows of the hotel, he saw the girl finally give one last tug and the ExTerra Executive Chairman Lydic Verell came out, looking pretty peaked as it was.

"You are to escort Mr Verell to his room. Top floor, executive suite 901. I have some business to attend to. Very smooth with that Firefly, Syaoran." Squeezing his shoulder once, she walked off and left him.

Moments later, in came Verell and the man looked like he was just about ready to kill someone, leaning on his secretary just slightly. The man was just barely five feet and stocky. An arm was draped around his secretary's leaning neck; who probably stood a full foot tall than him at least. Wearing solid grey business attire, he looked like any other rat-faced politician you could find on the market.

Li stepped forward and the secretary spotted him. Giving a stiff salute to her in the way he had been trained to do as a Scouter, she let the bodyguard nearby support Verell for a bit. Once she was in front of him, she fumbled in her pocket for something.

"Oh… where is it… Ah, here we go. You must be the bell hop…? Or… the Scouter?" she asked as soon as her eyes slid onto the shiny silver badge placed over his chest by his collar. It stuck out way too much and anyone who looked at it would know it didn't come with his uniform tonight.

"I'll be escorting Mr Verell to his room tonight."

The girl nodded satisfactorily.

"Right, right. Okay. My name is Nakuru Akizuki, and that's Chairman Verell you see there. He's… a little preoccupied with himself right now so you can probably leave him to me for the most part."

Li gave a stiff nod. "Of course. Let me just take care of your bags and I'll show you two up right away."

Nakuru gave a quick nod and returned to Verell. Li took the opportunity to take the silver badge off his front, stuffing it in his pocket. It was made of some lightweight material—probably an alluplex alloy of some sort. It would fetch a few clicks on the black market. Or it could be used to retool his phone.

Verell eventually brushed his secretary off, standing properly on his own two feet. Marching right up to Li, he fish-eyed him up and down before his gaze settled onto the alcoholic drink in his hand.

"A complimentary—"

In one swoop, Verell had poured back the contents of the Firefly and sighed contentedly. "The only damn good thing about Federation is its alcohol. If it weren't for the booze, I'd have blown this place to the moon a long time ago." Verell had said it with all the clarity of a sober man and all the fury of an army general.

Li simply blinked. "I'm to show you to your room, Sir. Number 901; the executive suite."

Nakuru had assisted in carrying a few of the bags and Li continued towards the elevators, letting them both on before stepping in after them. Verell had travelled light and by the weight of the bag Li had surmised they would only be here for one, maybe two, nights at most. From what Kero had told him of Verell the few times the subject ever came up, the man's hatred for Federation was legendary.

"So how are you enjoying your stay in Tokyo, Sir?"

"He's enjoying it just—"

"Enjoying it? Who's enjoying it?" Verell interrupted loudly. "I'm only here to throw that pompous, egotistical bastard for a President off his high horse! Bell hop, do you love Federation?"

Li blinked. Slightly behind him, Nakuru was making a sharp 'X' motion with her hands, shaking her head slightly. When Verell snapped his head around she immediately dropped her hands innocently. Looking back from one to the other, Li returned eye contact with Verell when he swivelled back around for an answer.

"Not particularly, Sir."

"Exactly! No one does! You know who's to blame for that! That bastard Kinomoto! If _I_ were the President of Federation, I would've turned the whole damn thing to ash and mortar already!"

_"Lydic,"_ was the harsh reprimand from his secretary.

Just like a babysitter, Li thought; not at all surprised by her use of his first name.

Verell snorted and crossed his arms childishly.

"I apologize. He gets like this when he's away from home."

Li shook his head. "No need, Miss. It's part of the job."

Upon reaching the top floor, Li made his way towards the room that Verell would be staying in, having memorized the way to get there based on the map that Mitzuki had supplied for him. It was the large one, at the very end of the hall overlooking the pool in the back with a wide, scenic view of Tokyo. It was the Zalite Rose's best suite and reserved only for the very best of its clientele.

"Nakuru, when I get back, I want you to take care of _that_, you hear? I want Kinomoto to _know_ who owns that sorry keister of his. I won't take this insult lying down, you hear?"

His secretary, Nakuru, sighed audibly. Li felt kind of sorry for her for having to put up with someone like him. "Yes, Lydic, I understand. Come on, you're tired and you've had more than you should to drink. When we get back to Viridisa we'll, ah, take care of _that._"

Li frowned mentally. Was _'that'_ the thing that Tomoyo said was their objective tonight? If it wasn't even here with him, then this was all a big fat waste of time. If it was something really that important, of course Verell wasn't going to take it with him—not when Viridisa is so much safer to keep whatever _that_ was safe.

Turning down a corner, Li saw a shadowy figure at the end of the hallway. Freezing on the spot, he felt his blood run cold. The light at the end of the hall was put out more than it was turned off. The figure was ominously standing in front of the door that Li was supposed to escort Verell to.

Suddenly, a thought came to him. Could that person be Meilin at all? Tomoyo had said she would appear in a disguise with blue hair. Devicers wouldn't point themselves out so openly like that. The number one rule to staying alive as a Devicer was _never be seen._

"W-Who is that?" Nakuru asked. Li could hear the fear in her voice.

"It's—"

_"A rhyme, a verse, is all I ask. One thing I know, I do not lack. To trust your trump and throw the die. All liars surely lie."_

A Devicer.

When the Devicer started to charge towards them, Li's mind shut off and he knew he had to take action. Whether he was doing it as a Scouter or as a Devicer didn't matter anymore. When the secretary screamed behind him, he knew he was doing it for the sake of making sure that the two people behind him got away safely.

Ducking down at the last second, Li sprung towards him. Instead of doing exactly what he thought the Devicer would, Li felt him _step_ on his head, launching past him and landing perfectly between him and his charge. Whipping around, he realized the situation he had just been thrown into.

Terror swept through the girl's eyes and Li could tell that she led a pretty straightforward, calm life.

_"My good man, your art is cunning. I admire wit. But, my boy, how fares your crutch? You seem a bit out of it."_

A shock of pain was sent through Li's shoulder and he fell to one knee, crying in agony. Clapping a hand over his shoulder, he winced, staring up at the Devicer blearily through the pain. Li was better than this, he knew he was. This was setup. This wasn't some random attack and this man knew what he was doing.

The white mask over the man's face with the single diamond teardrop gave enough of his identity away. Even so, Li couldn't be sure. Not completely.

Seemingly satisfied, the Devicer turned around and placed both hands on his hips, staring intently at the fear-seized secretary. Even though she was frozen in terror, Verell was not. In fact, he was shaking her for all the world—fearless. The fact that an unknown man had just assaulted their bell hop and petrified his secretary didn't even phase him.

"Nakuru! Get to your feet woman!"

"Th—Th..." Nakuru squeaked, hand shaking in front of her, tears straining down her face.

_"My good woman, you've nothing to fear. But even so, you wear fear well. Or is it that fear wears YOU well."_

The Devicer touched the crown of her head, placing a small, thin metallic disk on her forehead. Eyes rolling back in her head, she slumped over in Verell's arms.

Li cursed, unable to do anything. The pain coursing through his arm was too much to handle. It was the type of pain meant only to paralyze and incapacitate him—both of which it did very well. One question that still plagued his mind was how this lunatic even got here before him. Which side was he on? Who did he work for? If he was with Sakura's group, there wouldn't be a need to stun him like this.

"Who are you?" Verell asked fiercely, standing at his full height. Leering up at the man, Li had to applaud his bravery.

There was no direct threat to the man's life—most Devicers didn't take to killing needlessly.

_"Who am I? What am I? My good, kind Sir, I beg you ask yourself the same. Do you desire Federation? Do you seek to destroy an ungodly nation?"_ The Devicer asked the questions fiercely, almost angrily. It was angry enough to suggest a grudge against Federation greater than Verell's.

Verell held the masked man's invisible stare and glared back at him. "I don't need your help to destroy this damn government. What do you want? What are you here for?"

The Devicer laughed. _"A mere pittance. A triviality. I've gleaned what I've wanted and gained so much more."_ Turning around, the Devicer held one arm in front of him and bowed slightly, never taking his masked eyes off Li. _"My boy, you wear your heart on your sleeve. The game of silver requires much more cunning indeed. I bid you farewell, and for the lady, my fondest adieu. That we meet again is a choice specifically for you."_

When the Devicer lifted his hand, Li's eyes widened.

"Cover your eyes!"

***

"Unforgiveable!"

Chief of State Affairs Sonomi Daidouji sighed, rubbing her temple. The last week had been nothing but media clean-up for her and she barely got a wink of sleep last night. Not only was the Zalite Rose under lockdown still, but a few individuals were being put under question. It wasn't so much that what happened happened. Oh no, she had expected the worst of one Lydic Verell's unplanned, surprise visit. It was the fact that what happened was something she didn't even see coming.

One of the duties of the Chief of State Affairs was to deal with _international_ affairs. Since Federation was the governing body in most parts of the world, it was a roundabout way of saying that she was responsible for dealing with ExTerra and Viridisa. It went without further saying that this meant she also had to deal with Lydic Verell. Currently, the Chairman was being roomed somewhere not quite as luxurious as the Zalite Rose and everyone within a square mile radius knew of his discomfiture to some degree.

Turning her predatory gaze on the poor secretary in front of her, Sonomi saw her cower in fear slightly. Suppressing the urge to scream at the top of her lungs, she instead got up out of her chair and leaned back against her desk, rubbing her temples further.

"I'm sorry. I'm sleep-deprived, short-tempered and just plain angry right now. I don't really want to deal with anything else. What does Ferris have to say about all this? Anything? It was on _her_ recommendation that we send that rookie in."

The girl shook her head meekly. "M-Miss Ferris said that she would take strict measures with the new recruit at once."

Sonomi slammed her hand down on the table and the girl squeaked. "Tell her to stop shifting blame on other people because of her bad judgement! The new Scouter—whatever his name is—won't be held responsible. There should've been more personnel up there and there wasn't. It was our fault and now Federation is getting burned by it. Now we have the Chinese and Russian governments hot on our tails to take advantage of all this."

"Yes, ma'am. Oh, Vice President Kinomoto is also here to see you, ma'am. If you have time, that is," she added as an afterthought.

Sonomi sighed and looked skyward for a short moment. Dispelling her frustration, she let her shoulders slump and walked back around her desk, looking out the window across the clear blue sky. It wasn't the real sky, but she had no desire to see the real sky. A real sky that held nothing but grey foreshadowing of the future held no interest to her. The sky Sonomi wanted to see was just this one—clear, blue, pristine, and fake.

"Send her in."

When the door consequently was opened and shut soon after, Sonomi turned around after hearing nothing for a while. Dressed in a yellow dress with a white sweater overtop, she held her hands in front of her neatly. Sonomi couldn't help but smile at her fondly. Walking towards her, she folded her arms and stopped just in front of her cousin.

"What's wrong, darling?" she offered in sweet tones.

Nadeshiko fidgeted with her dress for a bit before looking up at her uncertainly. "S-Sonomi, I met someone."

A frown creased her brow immediately.

"He's no good for you, stay away from him, Nadeshiko." Turning around, she started to walk back to her desk.

"No! Really! He's a good man, Sonomi!" she pleaded, tugging on her arm.

Sonomi didn't dare look her way, determined to ignore the begging and whining of her cousin. They had had this conversation numerous times and each time was just as hard and irritable as the first. Not only that, but Sonomi particularly disliked this topic because the outcome wouldn't change no matter what happened and what words were exchanged now.

"I really like him, Sonomi! He's wonderful! You'll see!"

With a patient sigh, Sonomi turned to her cousin and cupped a hand to her cheek fretfully. Nadeshiko didn't deserve to go through all this and yet _that man_ didn't do anything to help. Of course it wasn't his fault; there was no one that _could_ help even if they wanted to. There was nothing for it.

Restraining herself, Sonomi gazed into the shining green eyes of her cousin and couldn't help suppress the smile that came to her lips. Whenever Nadeshiko was happy, she couldn't help but feel happy too.

"What's his name, Nadeshiko?"

Brightening, Nadeshiko edged closer to her, reaching for her free hand. "Fujitaka! Fujitaka Kinomoto!"

"He's too old for you, sweetie," she said calmly. Sonomi had said it countless times, but the first wasn't quite so calm. By now, reality had seeped into her world and she had long since come to terms with it.

Nadeshiko looked down shyly. "I know. But… I can't help it, Sonomi! That's love, you know?"

Laughing a little, Sonomi brushed her hair back a bit. "I know. I know you can't help it. Look, I have some work to get done, alright? How about I see you later and we can talk a bit more about this, okay?"

Nodding fervently, Nadeshiko broke away from Sonomi and skipped back to the door, waving her hand. "Alright! Don't forget, Sonomi! He's something special! You'll see!"

Sonomi smiled at her. When the door closed, the smile vanished and was replaced with a frown. Rolling her eyes, she walked around and fell into her chair with a sigh.

"Oh, he's something _special_ alright," she muttered darkly.

A screen popped up and her secretary appeared.

_"Ma'am, a video has just been released from the Zalite Rose security cameras. The authorities have looked it over and they asked me to pass it onto you."_

Sonomi sighed bitterly. "Any special requests?"

_"None in particular, Ma'am. They just thought that you might want to watch it."_

"Filter it through."

The screen closed and was replaced with a larger one. The picture came in perfect clarity and Sonomi could clearly make out the short, stumpy image of Lydic Verell along with his secretary. The rookie Scouter that had accompanied them was also there. From there, the image started to go blurry. Sonomi frowned. The Zalite Rose was the most secure hotel in all of Tokyo—their security devices were top-notch. A scrambled image like this was unheard of. Not only that, but though something was indeed happening as she saw the masked man quickly take care of the Scouter, there was no sound. Not even a trace.

Pressing the comm link, Sonomi frowned. "Yanagisawa, there should be sound on this, right?"

_"I'm not sure, Ma'am, it came just like that. This is the original surveillance."_

"I see."

The masked man stuck something to the poor secretary's forehead and it looked like she fell over. Leaning over Verell menacingly, Sonomi could imagine a smile behind that face.

_"Do you desire Federation? Do you seek to destroy an ungodly nation?"_

Sonomi's eyes widened. Clear as day, the voice had come through—as if he were here saying the exact same words. The voice was cold and cruel—like the voice of a killer. If she hadn't already known what the outcome of all of this was already, she'd probably be frightened for their lives. It wasn't terribly clear, for she didn't know a lot about the art at all, but she was fairly certain the masked one was a Devicer of some sort. Of what calibre exactly she couldn't be sure. All Scouters were, after all, to a mild degree a Devicer. Beyond that was semantics.

With the incident that occurred in Boz a little over a month ago, this was just the cherry on top. Of course it hadn't been released to the media what exactly was stolen in Boz—or why it needed such high security. None of that mattered to anybody—least of all her. What mattered was that it was stolen, right when they got lazy about keeping it secure.

"An 'ungodly nation' huh? Where have I heard _that_ before?"

***

The glowing green letters ran across the hovering screen of his phone in a marquee. The date and time blinked occasionally in the corner. Right now, he didn't want to answer the call. No matter how many times it buzzed and sought to grab his attention, Li paid it no mind. If he answered that call, he didn't know what to say or do about it. Right now, there was only one person he wanted to talk to for answers—and that person wasn't likely to call him ever again.

"Your phone is ringing again," was the calm response to the buzzing.

Li didn't frown, but he didn't like the disturbed silence either.

The Devicer had used a sort of stunning device. They were cheap, easy to manage and, to any Devicer, practically free. The materials required to make one could be found just about anywhere in Tokyo, and the hazard it produced was minimal but effective. If Li had even been able to have even a second of foresight, he could've saved his impaired sight. It was a temporary effect and would wear off soon, but he didn't like the idea of being blind in his right eye for the time being.

"Not going to answer it? Could be important."

Closing his eyes, Li sat up in bed and reached for his phone. The woman, Mitzuki, who had been with him at the start of the job had come by to visit him today. Rather than ask him questions or even say anything important, she merely sat down in the vacant bed next to his. Putting her feet up, she started peeling the basket of apples she brought in. For every apple there was only a single peel. Out of his good eye, Li saw her carve various things out of the apples as well—eating only a few bits.

"I'd much prefer to take it in private."

Mitzuki smiled. "Don't worry, I don't mind."

Li pursed his lips for a moment. Finally the buzzing stopped and Li knew that it would only start back up again in a few minutes. It had done that just about all day so far since waking up. Judging by the three-digit number of missed calls he hadn't picked up, whoever was trying to reach him had no other alternatives to contact him by.

"May I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Why are you here… Miss… ah… Misses…"

"Kaho is just fine," she supplied. Another perfect apple peel was skinned clean off and fell back into the basket. The sound of an apple being drawn and quartered was the only sound in the room for a long moment. The crisp crack of the fruit made Li remember that he was always particularly fond of apples. Real ones were hard to come by in China. "You don't like having company, Syaoran?"

Li glared out the window on his side of the room balefully. "This feels more like surveillance than company. Aren't you going to question me?"

Kaho sniffed. "Although it's within my jurisdiction to, as your senior, I don't see why I have to waste my time doing something like that. The cameras caught your valiant attempt well enough. Crippled and defenceless as you were. Anybody who's anybody has already seen it."

"Then why are you here?" he demanded sharply.

"To keep you company."

Kaho smiled.

Li frowned.

"Your phone is ringing again," she pointed out errantly, averting her eyes back to her apple.

And so it was.

With a defeated sigh, Li glanced at the glowing letters and grit his teeth—prepared for the worst. Turning on the private mode, he detached the earpiece and clipped it to his ear before putting his phone back on the stand.

"Speak."

_"Syaoran! Are you alright?"_ was the fretful and worried cry from a familiar voice.

Sakura.

Smiling reassuringly, though the private line prevented her from seeing it, Li gave a small laugh. "Yeah, I'm fine. You worry too much, Sa—Kin." Li had forgotten that Sakura Kinomoto was the daughter of Fedration's President, Fujitaka Kinomoto. If word got around that he was in touch with her, and that she was the mastermind behind so much organized crime, life wouldn't be a fun place to be for Li any time soon.

There was a relieved sigh. The use of her shortened last name didn't even seem to register beyond that. Judging from the large number of phone calls he had received, Li guessed that a good lot of them were probably from Sakura. More than likely, Sakura had no way to be reached by others than through Tomoyo—who usually contacted him through this number.

_"I'm glad then. When Tomoyo told me that something hadn't gone according to plan… I…"_ Sakura's voice shook slightly on the other end of the line and Li furrowed his brow. Despite all she had done and was responsible for, Li had never seen Sakura do any evil herself. It was hard to believe she was actually the one behind so much crime in the world.

"Shh. It's alright. What happened that night anyway?" he asked with a wary glance in Kaho's way—who honestly didn't seem to be paying attention at all.

_"Right, right. We found Meilin unconscious the day after. She said that someone had stuck something cold to her neck and she passed out right away. The others had mentioned similar experiences. There were only five of you in that hotel, and you were the only one who saw presumably who did it."_

"Is Mei—is she alright?"

Li still had _company._

_"Oh, Mei's just fine. Don't worry about her. Where have you been, Syaoran? You went missing for almost a week!"_

Giving her a sheepish smile she wouldn't ever receive, Li shook his head. "Passed out. I… I'm being taken care of, don't worry. I may even get out today if everything works out well."

Sakura sighed; relieved.

_"Good. I… you'll come see me when you get out, right?"_

Li hesitated for only a moment.

"Of course I will."

_"Great. Tomoyo wants to talk to you. I have… business to run. I'll see you later, Syaoran."_

"Yeah, later."

There was a switch in the recipient and Li could already tell that Tomoyo had confiscated her phone back. In his mind, he could already see the grin pulling at her lips shamelessly. Somehow, he didn't doubt at all that Tomoyo had a hand in all of what happened that night. That unknown Devicer and everything else that happened that night was all just a little too staged for it to be a fluke.

_"Hey, Boy. I have a favour to ask of you."_

"And I have some questions to ask of _you_," he returned sharply.

Tomoyo laughed.

_"Don't you take that tone with me. I have no idea what happened that night at all. What's important is that Mr Verell wasn't carrying what we wanted off him anyway."_

"I could've told you that a long time ago," Li said poisonously.

_"I guess you could've. But you didn't. No more complaints. Anyway, I'm having dinner with my folks and I need you to watch out for me. You're a Devicer aren't you?"_

Freezing, Li swallowed. If Tomoyo knew that he was a Devicer, what else did she know? Just who _was_ Tomoyo anyway? If Kero were here, he'd probably be able to tell him pages about the girl. Now that he was high and dry without his other half in the industry, Li realized just how inept he was at this kind of thing. All of it showed him just how much he relied on Kero for everything. From the plan to the details of the plan to the securing of the equipment—Kero did it all. The worst part of this situation was that Kero was nowhere to be found—not after the stunt in Boz plastered his foggy blue picture to half the world.

The sound of Tomoyo's deep, penetrating laugh returned once more and he could just picture the amusement on her face. _"It's no use hiding it from me, Syaoran. I'll admit to not knowing everything about you, but I could tell right away you're a Devicer. Do you really think I would've made you go through what you went through if I didn't? I'd never let a rookie handle a pro's job. People get killed that way. So. Dinner with my folks. Can I count on you to watch my back?"_

Li frowned. Just who were her parents and why did Tomoyo need protection for that? It made no sense, but then again, not many things Tomoyo said ever made sense to him sometimes. That or it made subtle hints to things that Li didn't really want to know the truth of.

"When? Why? Who are your parents?"

_"All in good time, Syaoran. Oh, and another thing, before I let you go. Princess likes you, so I'm doing everything in my power to not have you run into unfortunate accidents, you got it? Double-cross her, though, Mr Scouter, and you'll be eating mordite, lead, and other types of flying bits of metal off the barrel end of my magnum until the folks at Fed can't ID you anymore and you're buried in a faceless grave."_ Li shivered at how cheerfully she said it.

Smiling bitterly, Li closed his eyes.

"I understand."

Right now, he'd give anything for Kero to just bail him out of all this mess he had managed to get caught up in.

When the line clicked off, Li returned the earpiece to his phone and let out a long sigh. Too much had happened since that night and he wasn't prepared to see what the remainder of the week had in store for him. No doubt he'd be contacted again shortly with instructions to meet up at _The Lion's Edge_ and face another encounter with Sakura's psycho second-hand.

"Your girlfriend seems like a nice girl," Kaho commented.

Li jumped, nearly having forgotten she was even there. Turning to her sharply, he looked at her through his good eye. Not a thing was different about her since that night—everything was exactly the same as it was before. It had to be the same person, but at the same time, he couldn't imagine any way to possibly pin anything on her. There was just no concrete proof or evidence of it.

"She's… not my girlfriend," Li defended half-heartedly.

Kaho smiled. "Has anyone ever told you that you wear your heart on your sleeve, Syaoran? It's very obvious to everyone around you what you're thinking." Getting off the bed, Kaho placed the plate of perfectly sliced apple pieces next to his phone, smiling kindly. "You seem to like them. They aren't poisoned, you've watched me cut and eat them myself."

Still eyeing them suspiciously, Li looked back up to her smiling, calm and innocent face. There was something about this woman that wasn't quite right. Although he couldn't point out what it was, there was definitely something off about her. Everything just seemed off and he couldn't figure out why. It felt like he had met her somewhere before too.

"Why do you think I like apples?"

Kaho shrugged, moving towards the door with fluid-like grace, letting her hair swing with her steps. Stopping at the door, she cocked her head back over her shoulder, smiling. "Just a hunch. I hope your shoulder feels better, by the way. I hear it got injured."

Li's eyes widened just as she disappeared from view. Jumping out of bed, he ran towards the door. Looking left and right, he saw nothing and no one. It was a large hall and his room was right in the dead centre of that hallway, for her to disappear down a corner so easily was impossible. Narrowing his eyes in suspicion, Li shakily made his way back to bed, feeling all the blood rushing there, causing him to feel dizzy.

That Kaho Mitzuki… she wasn't who she appeared to be.

***

_"…Federation would offer such a meagre defence for such an important guest. If it were you on Virdisa, I can assure you, this nonsense wouldn't happen. We're too good for criminals to muck up the street. Aren't we Lydia?"_

A tired sigh.

_"Nakuru."_

"Right, right. Kinomoto, you should—"

"Should what?" Fujitaka returned domineeringly, sneering at him just a little. Right now, he didn't want to deal with idiots like Lydic Verell and his billion and one grudges he held against himself and Federation. For reasons unknown, the man hated him and he wasn't about to go having heart-to-hearts with a man he didn't much like himself to find out why.

The image of Lydic narrowed his eyes. Clear displeasure of being spoken to in such a manner framed his face. In their long, long, _redundantly_ long relationship of being acquaintances, Fujitaka just couldn't stand the man. He was annoying, selfish and egotistical. There was a severe lack of any politics required to run a government in that head of his. How Lydic even managed to run Viridisa astounded him.

Somehow, someway, the man had managed to enterprise the ExTerra separation from Federation—thus becoming its own governing entity on Viridisa. There was little charisma, talent and charm to be found within that short, stocky frame of his, and his looks certainly didn't garner him any extra votes either. By sheer consensus it seemed that his Executive Board merely put up with him and tolerated him at best. A man so ill-suited for any type of leadership role had managed to bastion and flaunt his own little empire out in space—free from all the havoc of climate on Earth. The man was either a genius or psychotic on drugs.

"Lydic, stop whining to me about Federation's alleged failure to—"

Lydic cut him off with a sharp laugh. _"Whining? Alleged? I may be whining, Kinomoto, but these are certainly NOT allegations. You've seen the footage. I was attacked in one of YOUR hotels, you arrogant bastard! It's on the tape! You've seen it yourself! Some crazy psychopath nearly killed me on this damn planet!"_

Fujitaka shifted in his seat uncomfortably. Not only was Lydic Verell infamously talented at getting what he wanted, he was infamously known for being infamously annoying. Aside from all that and his own personal dislikes about the man, Lydic Verell was still an important man he had to defer somewhat to. Russia and China were keeping close watch on Federation and how it treated other governments, if he wasn't playing nice with Lydic, it was certain that China and Russia wouldn't play nice with Federation. The irritating thing about that situation was that Lydic _knew_ all of that well enough to exploit it.

"I'm sure compensations will be made to you, Chairman Verell. If you'd like to see me at a later date to discuss it further…?"

Lydic snorted disdainfully, glaring at him.

_"I'd like to see you in Hell, Kinomoto."_

Fujitaka smiled.

"Only if you lead the way, Mr Chairman." Lydic glared at him. "You know, your insults against me could be considered a direct threat against Federation. An open declaration of war."

Rather than be scared off, Verell merely grinned at him, eyes narrowing in anticipation. They just _dared_ him to make it happen and Fujitaka knew that if he were as impatient and short-tempered as Verell, warheads would already be flying out to space as they spoke.

_"I know you wouldn't even dare. You're too worried about looking good in front of the Russians and Chinese. I know they own your face right now, Kinomoto. You don't scare me. Even if you did mean that I'd just pop that stupid little bubble of yours and let the planet do the rest."_

Fujitaka frowned. This conversation had become stupid enough and he was getting severely irritated from it by now. "As much as I love entertaining you, Chairman, I am a busy man with many things on his plate to take care of. I wish you a speedy recovery and safe journey back home," he said, turning the comm link off.

Leaning back in his chair with a sigh, Fujitaka rubbed his throbbing temples. Some days he just wanted to quit being president of anything and give in to all the stress. To just collapse and not have to see this office ever again for the rest of his life. For thirty-three years he had walked through those doors every day to come sit down in this chair and listen to the people whine and complain to him. That's all they did because that was all they knew how to do.

These people weren't even people. They were children waiting to be fed. If it weren't for Sonomi, he'd be able to have done just that. The people wanted protection so he offered them all a mandatory ID to wear at all times and they rejected that. Not only were 'the people' not even people, but they were fussy and prone to throw tantrums. Fujitaka was sick of it. He was sick of wiping the snot running from the noses of the dredges of society. If it weren't for that damn bubble overlooking them with that fake sun and fake blue sky, maybe the people would be a little less apathetic.

There were, after all, so many other Federation cities that did not enjoy the comforts of a protective, regulated atmosphere that the dome provided. The people of Tokyo had receded into a disgusting, apathetic slum about the rest of the world. Everyone outside the bubble didn't matter to them and for that reason he wanted to take it down. For perfect equivalency, he wanted to turn the dome off and show Tokyo what it was like for everyone else in the world right that wasn't living here.

Closing his tired eyes, Fujitaka relaxed his shoulders. When his glasses were slipped off without him so much as touching them, he opened his eyes and smiled. The only redeeming joy about being president that brought him back to the podium to win the seat year after year was his only reason for living.

"You look so silly when you're working so hard. Relax a bit, darling."

Fujitaka sighed as he let his wife's nimble fingers run over his shoulders in a relaxing massage. If he didn't have Nadeshiko, he didn't know what he would do. It was bad enough Tory was starting to become more distant. If Nadeshiko left him, his life would be over as he knew it. Nothing else mattered to him other than Nadeshiko.

"I'm so tired…" he admitted to her honestly, letting the scent of shampoo off her freshly washed hair soothe his dying nerves.

Nadeshiko giggled a bit. "You need to relax. Don't think too much about the world's affairs, Mr President. When the weight of the world is on your shoulders, I'll always be here to help lift the burden."

Opening his eyes, he wrapped an arm around his wife and pulled her close, kissing the side of her neck affectionately. Nadeshiko placed a hand on the side of his head gently, stroking his head. There was nothing in this world more precious to him than Nadeshiko. He would throw everything away for her. If that was enough to save her, then he would have done it a long time ago. Right now, as it stood, he couldn't do anything about it.

"Darling, we're having dinner with Sakura tonight. At seven. It's a rare opportunity for us. You know how busy she is. You'll be there, won't you?"

Fujitaka smiled, suppressing anything else. For Nadeshiko, he would only ever smile. "I will try, Nadeshiko. I can't make promises, though… Please don't make that face. I love Sakura just as much as you do… you know how it is."

A weak smile came back to her face. "I know. Sakura misses you though. Please try to come. Sonomi will be there too. And… and… Tory might come! It'll be just like a little family reunion for us! Oh, try to make it, won't you?" she begged, tugging on his tie playfully.

Laughing, feeling twenty years younger, he caught her hand and kissed her open palm. "I promise you I'll try. Seven. The same restaurant?"

"Yes. I'm going to go help Sonomi with some paperwork now. I have to make sure you two aren't doing it all on your own now, right? I am the VP after all!" she declared energetically, jumping off his lap and marching right out of his office with that determined can-do attitude and purposeful stride.

Chuckling to himself, Fujitaka held a hand over his eyes, fighting the tears back.

"If only all this were enough…"

* * *

Please R&R.

- Minute Maid

Beverage of Queens.


End file.
